On the way to give another talk, I’m thinking about what it means to speak in public. There are so few really good academic speakers – strange given the element of performance that must be part of the motivation.

Derek Gregory has an interesting point on his webpage where he talks of the choice between acting and being an academic, and he chose academia because he could write his own scripts (and mark the audience). Derek is a terrific speaker, perhaps in part because of his acting ability. But most important he seems to exemplify some things that we would all do well in following. I’ve tried to distil a few thoughts

– Be interested in your material. Some speakers seem bored by themselves. And you can make even unpromising material engaging if it is clear you are interested in it yourself. If you’re not, why not?

– Prepare carefully. If you’re using powerpoint or similar, check it carefully. Make time to run it through on the laptop or equipment you will be using – get there early, skip the previous coffee break, etc. Have a backup plan – a way to give the lecture if the power fails etc.

– Practice. I always run the talk through live before I give it in public. This is often in hotel rooms. It helps massively with working out its timing, and how it sounds.

– If you must read, at least work on the text so it reads well. Some people read as if they are surprised by the text. Some ways of writing do not work well when spoken. It can make a big difference to switch from formulations like ‘To be sure…’ to ‘Of course…’ Break sentences up; try to have at least a few bits where you can talk rather than read. Some people give dreadfully stilted talks and then come alive when the questions come, speaking in perfectly formed sentences in response.

– Keep to time. You can’t accomplish the same in 20 minutes as 50 minutes, so don’t try. Don’t try to read a paper, give a talk. That might summarise some key themes, or focus on one section, or be a provocation, or… Cut the speech according to the time, the brief, the audience. Your audience doesn’t have to be there.

– Accept and use your nerves. I am always nervous when speaking. It’s never gone away, and now I don’t want it to. I take it as a sign that I am taking the event seriously. So it’s the same kind of adrenaline as going on stage as an actor or musician.

There are loads of other things to consider of course, but these might be of interest. I’m not claiming that I’m a good speaker, but I’ve got better, and I’d be surprised if people thought I didn’t prepare carefully or take the audience seriously.