Writing revolves around big ideas.
These are the biggest ideas I learned from years of speechwriting 👇
These are the biggest ideas I learned from years of speechwriting 👇
2. Make the product better.
“That’s the kind of effort good writing takes. When you draft a speech I want you to ask yourself whether you can make it better before you show it to me.” -General Petraeus
Fix blemishes, large and small.
letter.substack.com/p/the-parable-…
“That’s the kind of effort good writing takes. When you draft a speech I want you to ask yourself whether you can make it better before you show it to me.” -General Petraeus
Fix blemishes, large and small.
letter.substack.com/p/the-parable-…
3. Hit the head and the heart at the same time.
If the point of music is to stir emotion, then the point of communication is to inspire action. Virtuosos think about how to move an audience from one point of view to another.
letter.substack.com/p/what-taylor-…
If the point of music is to stir emotion, then the point of communication is to inspire action. Virtuosos think about how to move an audience from one point of view to another.
letter.substack.com/p/what-taylor-…
4. Make the process sustainable.
The big idea — the one practical hack — is to move from one stage to next before the thing gets too precious.
letter.substack.com/p/make-things-…
The big idea — the one practical hack — is to move from one stage to next before the thing gets too precious.
letter.substack.com/p/make-things-…
5. Fuel the reactor.
When the process stalls, the solution isn’t to write, it’s to read.
letter.substack.com/p/highly-enric…
When the process stalls, the solution isn’t to write, it’s to read.
letter.substack.com/p/highly-enric…
6. Move up and to the left (see graph).
If you want to write something compelling, you have to add an axis to your creative process. Make the ideas bigger and the word count smaller at the same time.
letter.substack.com/p/write-like-n…
If you want to write something compelling, you have to add an axis to your creative process. Make the ideas bigger and the word count smaller at the same time.
letter.substack.com/p/write-like-n…
7. Call on a lifetime of accumulated thought patterns.
If you put concepts in order often enough, they start to form patterns in your mind.
letter.substack.com/p/thought-and-…
If you put concepts in order often enough, they start to form patterns in your mind.
letter.substack.com/p/thought-and-…
8. Keep writing.
In the mind of Olympic runners, the race isn't a product. The product is years of consistent, excellent work. It's their answer to the question, “What have you done for me lately?”
letter.substack.com/p/what-have-yo…
In the mind of Olympic runners, the race isn't a product. The product is years of consistent, excellent work. It's their answer to the question, “What have you done for me lately?”
letter.substack.com/p/what-have-yo…
9. Stay curious!
We don’t write about new interests, we write about new forms of old interests.
letter.substack.com/p/the-subject-…
We don’t write about new interests, we write about new forms of old interests.
letter.substack.com/p/the-subject-…
