Ted Sorensen's 6 Basic Rules for Speechwriting

Theodore Chaikin "Ted" Sorensen - the man who advised several Presidents over a period of 50 years, including John F. Kennedy, and was his counsel & speechwriter - compiled a list of six basic rules for speechwriting:

1.) Less Is Almost Always Better Than More

• Make it as simple and direct as the Ten Commandments; as simple of J.P. Morgan's alleged response to the youngster who asked him the secret to the stock market: "It fluctuates." 
• Two examples: 
• Winston Churchill's opening line in his radio address after the fall of France in June 1940: "The news from France is very bad." Not one unclear or unnecessary word. 
• A sign for a fish store window: "Fresh Fish for Sale Here Today." The only necessary word on that sign is "fish."

2.) Choose Each Word As A Precision Tool

• Care and prudence in selecting the right word and sequence of words.
• Stay out of the terminology trap.
• Use metaphors.

3.) Organize The Text To Simplify, Clarify, Emphasize

• A speech should flow from an outline in logical order.
• Number points, when appropriate; each numbered paragraph can start with the same few words.
• There should be a tightly organized, coherent, and consistent theme.

4.) Use Variety And Literary Devices To Reinforce Memorability, Not Confuse Or Distract

• Use of Quotations 
• "Some men see things as they are and say, 'Why?' I dream of things that never were and say, 'Why not?'"
• Rhyming words are more easily remembered and more clearly communicated.
• "Let every nation know...that we shall oppose any foe."
• Alliteration and repetition can help make a speech memorable.
• "Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate."
• "Bring the absolute power to destroy other nations under the absolute control of all nations."

5.) Employ Elevated But Not Grandiose Language

• JFK and Sorensen tried to elevate and yet simplify his speeches; not to patronize his audiences, but to keep his sentences short, his words understandable, and his organizational structure and ideas clear.
• Kennedy used straightforward declarations, not "maybe" or "perhaps."
• A policy speech is not a statute, which needs to specify every detail in legally precise and comprehensive terms - nor should it be, if it is to be both enjoyed and understood by all its listeners.

6.) Substantive Ideas Are The Most Important Part Of Any Speech

• A great speech is great because of the strong ideas conveyed, the principles, the values, the decisions.
• If the ideas are great, the speech will be great, even if the words are pedestrian; but if the words are soaring, beautiful, eloquent, it is still not a great speech if the ideas are flaw, empty, or mean-spirited.

-Excerpt from "Counselor: A Life at the Edge of History" by Ted Sorensen (2008)