speech and started to improvise, you were speaking extemporaneously. This is just a big word meaning that you come up with the exact wording as you go along. (The Latin word literally means “out of time,” which is often the situation that forces a speaker to think up the delivery on the spot—since time has run out.)
–don’t loSe Your Place–
An extemporaneous speech is not invented on the spot, however. It is actually thought out well in advance, and all the steps we’ve taken thus far in craft- ing a speech are used to prepare an extemporaneous speech—except the step of writing it out word for word. Instead, the extemporaneous speech is delivered from an outline or from rough notes, which are often printed on index cards.
This outline is not the one you created in Lesson 6, however. That was just a preliminary outline to get you started. This is the step you took in Lessons 7 through 9, where you wrote out the body, conclusion, and introduction verbatim. In the case of an extempo- raneous speech, you would still take those steps, except that you won’t write them verbatim; you’ll make an outline or rough notes on what you’ll say at those points and go from there.
Here is an outline I would use if I were giving the speech on painting miniatures:
I. Greeting
Thanks for invite A.
Mention some of their projects
B. [examine in
advance, fill in below] 1.
2. 3.
Credentials: C.
1. been painting since I was six years old 2. fantasy figures
Topic: brushwork and paint, figure materials D.
1. types of paint 2. brushwork 3. media II. Types of paint
John Smith,
A. How to Paint Realistic Miniature Figures
1. “Paint selection is the lifeblood of any painting project. Selecting the wrong paint for your project is like eating poison—bad paint can kill your favorite figure.”
Many to choose from B.
1. [set up paint samples in front of room] Primer = best starting point
C.
1. important for base coat
2. allows variety of paints to adhere that might not otherwise
Why paints are different D.
You’ll notice several things about this outline. First, it’s brief. It does not provide the exact wording you’ll use when speaking; it only gives you the infor- mation you need to remember what you intend to say at each point. This enables you to keep your eyes on your audience more than on your notes, while it also prevents you from getting lost.
You’ll also notice that I’ve included bracketed lines. I deliberately boldface such instructions in my own outlines so that I can see them easily in advance, enabling me to do my preliminary work before I get up front to speak. So this technique would remind you to examine the figures painted by your audience and to set up some paints to use as a visual aid beforehand.
I leave a few blank lines in my outline to fill in just before speaking. I do this because I intend to examine the painted miniatures that the audience brings with them, but I don’t know what they’ll be until I get there. Once I’ve seen them, I jot down a few brief notes in my outline just prior to speaking, and then mention the specifics in my introduction.
Notice also that the entire Smith quotation is written out in full. When quoting someone, you don’t rely on extemporaneous invention because you need to get the words exactly correct. At this one point, you would be reading directly from your speech. Yet it also enables you to glance ahead to your next point so that you can then return your eyes to the audience.
Clearly, the extemporaneous speech is often the most effective method because it sounds spontaneous even though it is well rehearsed. People enjoy listening to someone who speaks conversationally rather than to someone rehashing a canned lecture, and this
method achieves that end. Here are some tips to remember:
n Practice! This may come as a surprise, given
that you haven’t written out the text and you’re not memorizing anything—yet that means it’s even more important to practice. You will be more confident if you know approximately what you will say at each point on your outline, even though you are not trying to memorize exact wording.
n Make changes to your outline. Another benefit
of practice is you will think of things to say that are not in your outline, and you may dis- cover things that are in your outline that don’t work. Mark the outline as you go, and then make those changes to your computer file.
n Use a computer. This is probably self-evident
to most in our present computer age, but just in case: A computer document is easy to change and adjust handwritten pages are not. Computers also allow you to use a clear, easy- to-read font.
n Use a clear, easy-to-read font. In case it wasn’t
clear in the previous point, legibility is as important in your outline as it would be in a written speech. I use a decent-sized font with double-spacing for ease of reading.
n Do not write out a lot of text—but make sure
it’s enough. Your outline notes are intended to jog your memory on what you want to say next, but they’re only a memory-jogger, not a puppet master. You want those notes to be clearly meaningful to you at the time of delivery, with- out being so wordy that you begin to read ver- batim. Find a balance that works for you.
n Practice some more. Every time you make an
adjustment to your outline, you should rehearse the entire speech again. Yes, it’s a lot of work, but it makes the difference between mediocrity and excellence. Strive for excellence.