Workshops

Member cost is $15 advance payment; $20 at the door.
Nonmember cost is $25 advance payment; $30 at the door.
Reservations are required. To RSVP, call (202) 775-5150,
e-mail rsvp@washwriter.org or register online
Please mention the event for which you are responding and your membership status.

Thursday, July 31, 2008
7:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m., Light refreshments
AIW Office
1001 Connecticut Avenue, Suite 701
(actually on K Street between Connecticut and 17th, next to News World)
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 775-5150
Wheelchair accessible
Metro: Farragut North (Red Line), Farragut West (Blue and Orange lines)

For Mapquest directions, click on Mapquest

EFFECTIVE NETWORKING TO MAKE GOOD CONNECTIONS

Emphasis will be on practice and feedback after discussion of presenting yourself in pithy ways, engaging conversation and networking planning and strategies. Prepare by creating a two-minute summary of your focus or interests.

Al Portner is a four-term AIW Treasurer, former newspaper executive, and president of The Assignment Desk, LLC.

Ruth Schimel, Ph.D, Career and Life Management Consultant, has been a diplomat, professor and management consultant. Her writing focuses on professional and personal development.

Click here for registration prices.

Workshop reports

Advice for Speechwriters                                                                      
By Gil Klein, AIW Member

Washington, D.C., is gasbag central, and that makes it Mecca for a speechwriter.

That’s how Ed Vilade, who has made a living writing speeches for 25 years, summed up the opportunities available in this city for those few brave souls who wish to pursue that trade.
“The more people who blanch at the mention of speechwriting, the better it is for me,” Vilade told about 30 AIW members at a speechwriting workshop on March 4.

A freelance corporate speechwriter can expect to earn about $3,300 writing a 20-minute speech, he said. And if it takes 40 hours to complete it, he’s not working fast enough. “It’s the highest paid, non-managerial communications job by far,” Vilade said.

A speechwriter has to be an advocate for the audience, Jan Cook, who is now a speechwriter at Fanny Mae, told the crowd. “You have to write what they want to hear.”

Rosemary King, an Air Force Lt. Colonel who now writes speeches for Defense Secretary Robert Gates, said a good speechwriter will take out all of the I’s in a speech and replace them with You’s in order to better connect the speaker to the audience.

She frequently dips into an “idea box” of anecdotes and catchy phrases that she fills every time one catches her eye.

“Keep it simple and keep it short,” she said. The Gettysburg address was only 272 words and about 70 percent of them were only one syllable.

Vilade adds, “You have to write for the ear, not for the eye. The shorter the better. Cut every sentence in half, cut every word in half… In a 20-minute speech, you should tell what you are going to tell, make three points, and then tell what you told them.”

When writing a speech, it is often better to use a tape recorder than write it onto a computer, Cook said. That gives a better idea of how the words sound.

“Beware of hard to pronounce words,” King adds. They may look fine on paper, but the speaker will stumble over them.

“It is best to write a speech, then put it away for a couple of days, then look at it with fresh eyes,” she said.

Speechwriting is a very personal experience, Cook said. Many people are uncomfortable having someone write their words. She recommends getting to know the speaker and his or her institution to see how they describe the organization. Reading past speeches the speaker has made gives a better idea of the speech patterns he or she is comfortable using.

King recommended that a speechwriter have four contact points with the speaker. First, a few weeks before the speech, the writer should talk to the speaker about why he or she is making this speech and what he or she wants to convey. Then, a few days out, the writer should bring the speech to the speaker to go over what changes should be made. Third, on the day of the speech, the writer should go over last minute changes with the speaker. And finally, the writer should meet with the speaker after the speech to find out how the speaker thought it went over.

Cook had her own way of determining the effectiveness of a speech. As soon as it’s over, she said, she goes into the ladies’ room to eavesdrop on what people are saying.

The following are sources of information for speechwriters:

 

Click here to read about more past Workshops.