She Scared the Hell Out of Me (and Made Me Better)

Feb 27, 2023

My former boss died February 18, after battling an aggressive cancer for less than a year.  She was brilliant and dedicated and selfless, and had terrifyingly high standards. I respected …

My Electric Speechwriter, and Me

Aug 17, 2023

Prologue, Post-Dated, August 24, 2023 I wrote the piece below before I spoke with the Dutch founders of the speechwriting app Verble, Devin van den Berg and Victor Straatman. In …

Blank page, blue sky

Apr 08, 2015

I get it on the golf course every time I'm paired with a stranger. There's a wait on the fourth tee, and the guy says, "So what do you do …

Canadian speechmaking: oxymoron!

Jul 10, 2014

What’s the “state of speechwriting” in your country? Chances are, stronger than in Canada, according to Ottawa writer John Phillips, who recently explained in a blog post “Why Canada has …

Speechwriter dies, but his truth lives on

Sep 03, 2014

Editor's Note: Former Nelson Rockefeller speechwriter Joseph Persico died Saturday at 84. As the obits said, this scribe (and historian) literally had his words etched in granite. He was chosen …

Everyone is afraid of ghosts

Dec 09, 2014

I think speechwriters are waiting for people to finally understand what they do—and realize that this is an entirely honorable and ethical and useful profession. They have been waiting a …

School scribes swept up in university spending controversy

Dec 03, 2014

As the cost of a college education rises, university costs are being scrutinized. And whenever bureaucracies are criticized, the leader’s speechwriter is the easiest symbol of excess. University speechwriters, look …