Writing for speaking

A good article often makes a poor script. When reading, the eye can jump back, skim brackets and take apart a long sentence at leisure. When listening, that isn’t possible: each sentence comes once, at your pace. And you have to be able to say it without stumbling.

One idea per sentence

Write sentences you can say in one breath. As a rule of thumb, a sentence becomes hard to say at around 20 words. Split it. So

We have now completely reworked the product, which we developed last year after many conversations with customers.

becomes

Last year we talked to a lot of customers. That’s where the product came from. Now we’ve reworked it from the ground up.

The speaking time calculator marks long sentences in your text.

Lead with the point

Listeners can’t skip ahead to find out what a sentence is about. If the point comes at the end, after a run of clauses, they have to hold everything in their head until then. Put the subject and the verb up front, and the main point early: “Today I’ll show you three ways to start” rather than “Of the many approaches that people have tried over the years, there are three that I’d like to show you today.”

Write the way you speak

Numbers as you say them: “around two million” rather than “1,987,430”. Write years and times so you don’t have to work them out.
Spell out abbreviations you don’t say as abbreviations: “for example” rather than “e.g.”.
No brackets. Whatever is in brackets belongs in its own sentence or should go.
“You”, not “one” or “people”. Talk to the person in front of the camera.
Repetition is allowed. What feels redundant on the page helps the listener: say again at the end what it was about.

Paragraphs are breathing pauses

A blank line in the script is a pause in your speech. One paragraph per idea keeps the text clear when you read it off the screen. In Prompt Flower, paragraphs have two more jobs: Back to paragraph jumps to their start, and the YouTube chapters in the export are made from paragraphs.

Stage directions

Prompt Flower does not follow anything in square brackets and shows it dimmed. Use them to give yourself directions:

[smile] Hello and welcome.
Today it's about a question I hear a lot. [Pause]
How do I get started? [look away]

Use them sparingly: a few directions help, too many distract.

Read it aloud before you record

Read the text aloud once before it is finished. Where you stumble, the listener stumbles too. Cut words you leave out naturally when speaking, and replace words you find awkward to say.

How long is your text?

Most speakers work with 130 to 160 words per minute. One minute of video is roughly 150 words. The speaking time calculator works it out for you.