In previous blogs, we covered what to say in your writing and how. The last blog covered a list of quick tips for writing in various formats.
This blog will focus solely on writing for the ear—speeches, radio scripts, podcasts, narration tracks, and other audio forms. This type of writing is different from writing for the page.
Here are some quick tips for audio formats:
Flow
Audio formats absolutely require flow. This is important in all kinds of writing, but no more so than here. Your sentences have to flow from one to the next without any choppiness or awkward pauses. They have to sound good moving through the piece. And they have to be readable. Avoid parenthesis, ellipses, dashes and asides, which are always awkward when spoken. Don’t use subclauses either.
Short Sentences
Keep your sentences short. They are easy to read for the speaker and to listen to for the audience. Short sentences also eliminate the need for extraneous punctuation that will slow your speaker.
Vary Sentence Length
Even if you are using short sentences. Don’t make all of your sentences the same length. It will make it too choppy. Remember it has to flow. Identical sentence length will make your work sound juvenile and unprofessional.
Read It Aloud
Every time you make a change, read it aloud. Make sure every word is easily readable and pronounceable. Even if you can read it silently without issue, you have to read it aloud. Speaking is different from reading in your head. You have to read it aloud to find the trouble spots. Then make a rule that whenever you stumble when reading aloud, change it. Stumbles point to awkward sentences and trouble spots.
Words
Some words seem easy on the page, but are brutes in speeches. They destroy speakers. Beware of ten-dollar words, like indefatigable, indubitably, indomitable, ignominy, perspicacious, pilgrimages, and other words like this. They are difficult to say and slow the speech unnecessarily. Save them for the page, not the ear. Although they don’t help in most cases, either for the ear or not. Use simple words for higher readability.
Timing
Like everything else, you need to time your speech. When you reading it aloud is the perfect time to find out how long you are running. But be aware that if you are writing for someone else to deliver, you need to use their spoken word rate to determine length. Everyone speaks at a different speed. You’ll need to time the copy when they read it or use their average speech speed to write for time.
Find Your Voice
If you are writing a speech for someone else, you also need to match their cadence, tone, voice, style and word choices. It’s not easy, but it is essential if you are going to write a convincing speech. The best way to do this is to review previous speeches (if they were successful) and to review recordings of the speaker. I once scripted answers for Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. I spent hours studying her style through broadcast interviews and speeches. Studying her delivery and tone helped me write answers that suited her style, which was vastly different from my own. You need to do your homework to write speeches for others.
Watch Homonyms
Watch words that can change the meaning of your sentences, particularly when spoken aloud. For example, imagine you are writing about pregnancy, but want to include an anecdote about food cravings. You want to say something about bread, but where the story is place could make it sound like you are saying “bred” instead. To avoid confusion, you should change what you are saying. Consider adding a descriptive to provide context and understanding. For example: “She craved sourdough, rye and wheat. All the breads she could find. This was normal for women in her trimester.” It’s up to you to make sure the audience understands what you or your client are trying to say. Perception is everything. If they hear something different, that is your failure.
Watch Confusion
Homonyms aren’t the only way to confuse your audience. Consider how your sentences will sound to your audience. How will they hear it? Will they hear a poetic bit of beauty or find your flowery phrase a source of ridicule? Will they confuse your fancy combination of words because they associate one of the words with something else? Some words have certain connotations. Don’t use them in a poetic way unless you want to confuse the issue. If you do use words that are commonly associated with something else, chances are your audience will make that association, not the one you are trying to make. Be careful.
Word Choice
Don’t use words that can be mistaken for something else. For example, don’t use words that sound similar to derogatory words or offensive terms, even it you are using them correctly. The best rule is to avoid any word play or words that may be misheard and interpreted as rude.
Accents
If you are writing for someone with an accent, pay close attention to how they pronounce words, vowels and consonants. If you notice they have difficulty pronouncing a particular consonant or diphthong , minimize its use. Personally, I can’t pronounce words with double O’s without sliding through them. Books comes out sounding more like Bicks, which is hard to understand. Avoid this. You need the audience to understand the speaker. Clarity is paramount. Work around linguistic issues.
Avoid Jargon
Every group has its own language that they understand and use without reservation. You need to use caution when using that vocabulary yourself. If you do choose to use an acronym or uncommon word, define it within the context of your speech. Whenever possible, avoid acronyms, buzz words, or technical speak. When you cannot avoid it, or when it’s appropriate for the audience, still define it on the first use or whenever you haven’t spoken about it for a while. You want everyone to understand the content of your speech, not just those who are in the know.
Be Flexible with Grammar
Writing for the ear is different from writing for the eye. How it sounds is more important than how it looks on the page. Rewrite sentences that sound awkward even if that means making it less grammatical. For example, if the sentence has “with which” or “to whom” it can likely be changed to avoid that. In speechwriting, it’s okay to start sentences with conjunctions (like and, but, and however). It’s also okay to end sentences with prepositions. However, it is not okay to break basic grammar rules, like subject-verb agreement, dangling modifiers, parallel construction. and split infinitives. Rewrite the sentences to avoid awkward grammar.