Quotes About Speechwriting

I always believed as a speechwriter that if you could persuade the president to commit himself to certain words, he would feel himself committed to the ideas that underlay those words.

I had never really planned on being a speechwriter.

Modern political speechwriting is not a high-minded pursuit for brilliant talents.

You can't be a storyteller and a speechwriter at the same time.

Modern political speechwriting is certainly a skill, and one that requires experience and practice to master.

As thrilling as it was, speechwriting is ultimately frustrating for someone who wants to be a writer.

The recipe for a good speech includes some shortening.

A presidential speech is always the work of many hands.

Winston Churchill had once told him, "An important speech should take an hour to write for every minute it took to deliver, while at the same time, dear boy, you must leave your audience convinced it was off the cuff.

Winston Churchill had once told him, "An important speech should take an hour to write for every minute it took to deliver, while at the same time, dear boy, you must leave your audience convinced it was off the cuff." That was the difference between a mere speaker and an orator, Churchill had suggested.

Before you write - remember that every speech has something of 'you' in the writing. Don't take that away when you write. Be yourself. Be comfortable in your own skin.

Always reduce it down. This keeps it from having a false bigness in your mind, and allows you to get your hands around it. Another way to get a handle on what you want to say is to ask: What does this speech have to do? Every speech has a job, a reason for being.