Are good writers also good speakers?

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   ChitrangadaSharanposted 11 years ago

   Are good writers also good speakers?

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   chef-de-jourposted 11 years ago

   Not necessarily. In my experience many writers and poets are somewhat introverted which is an advantage when it comes to sitting alone and physically writing and thinking. It could be that some writers are not what you'd call natural conversationalists but they are able to talk endlessly about books,poems and other forms of literature! Especially if you give them a large bottle of wine which you've paid for!
   Although out there somewhere there must be an excellent writer who could also speak with perfect diction and able to talk the hind leg off a donkey!

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      ChitrangadaSharanposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I agree with you. And if it  is the combination of an expressive writer and a mesmerizing speaker, nothing like it. Thanks for your response.

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   Old Empresarioposted 11 years ago

   In my experience, good writers are not necessarily good public speakers (They spend a lot of time and editing putting those perfect sentences together). However, good readers are usually very good speakers who exercise their brain by reading out loud, which keeps their brain sharp and keeps them articulate.

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      ChitrangadaSharanposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I agree with you.  Thanks for your response.

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   M. T. Dremerposted 11 years ago

   I've met both kinds of writers. Sherman Alexie is a brilliant writer and a captivating speaker. Steve Hamilton is another great writer, but I could tell that he wasn't as comfortable speaking in front of a crowd. Personally, I'm terrified by the idea of speaking to an audience. I have plenty to say about my writing, but I'm always worried about a heckler who is going to give me a question that I can't answer and then I will look like an idiot. I don't know if that fear is warranted or not. I've had people tell me before that I'm well spoken, but that really hasn't helped my confidence levels at all. It just makes me self conscious that I'm being misinterpreted as pompous. Apparently I have a lot of things I need to work through, lol.

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      ChitrangadaSharanposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I agree, there are both kinds  of people. But speaking in public does require a different kind of talent--knowledge, promptness and spontaneity.

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   Lisa HWposted 11 years ago

   Good writers are like everyone else - individuals with their own individual set of traits and skills.  Some good writers or good auto mechanics or good school teachers are excellent speakers.  Some good writers or good auto mechanics or good school teachers are terrible speakers.  There's also a difference between speaking in conversation and public speaking.
   
   Words come easily and effortlessly to me - both in writing and in personal conversation.   Contrary to what someone else on here has said; I don't spend time editing and constructing my sentences.  For the most part..   What I have to say is automatically constructed in my head and just comes out.   There are two areas of verbal communication that I'm not good at.  One is public speaking.  Forget that.  I'm not someone who will ever do that.  The other is in in-person verbal confrontations when the other person is angry and unreasonable.  I really can't hold my own in that setting because I can only deal with lack of reason in on-paper/in-writing debate - not personal debate.  I lack the kind of aggression required to hold my own when someone else is hostile and/or unreasonable.  Dealing with that particular kind of "verbal challenge" is something other than word skills though.  It has to do with being able to be loud and crazy-acting enough to leave others not knowing how to deal with you.   lol    I think because I'm so "verbal-skills inclined"; I'm "all words; logic; and reason".  I don't even know how to be "all emotional and hostile and aggressive and out-of-control"; so I really don't do well when that's how someone else operates.   BUT...   in one-to-one conversation or in small groups - I'm known as being very natural having conversation of all kinds as long as the conversation is civil and/or friendly.
   
       Note:  My weird punctuation here is because my comma key and other keys aren't working in the humidity.

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      ChitrangadaSharanposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      That was an interesting answer. I am sure public speaking is challenging for most of the people. Thanks for your response.

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   beckyefpposted 11 years ago

   It won't be the same for all writers, but I find it much more challenging to speak than to write. It really depends on the message and the intended audience. Those factors add a lot of pressure to express myself correctly. If I have something important to say to a superior, I often have to think it out or write it down before I feel prepared to enter into conversation. That said, when I'm in a casual speaking situation, I don't have difficulty expressing myself.
   
   Revision is my security blanket. I feel safer writing things simply because I can edit my message before others read it.

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      ChitrangadaSharanposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Yes, I agree, public speaking is much more challenging and you need to prepare yourself for that. And you are not the only one to feel so. You gave some  nice tips' --to  write it down---.'  Thanks for your response.

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   UMHiramposted 11 years ago

   In my opinion, I don't think that good writers are necessarily good speakers.  Some of the writers I know personally would rather be at home creating their work of art than having to address a room full of people.  Public speaking is not for everyone ...

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      ChitrangadaSharanposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Yes I agree, public speaking is a different kind of talent, which is not possessed by everyone. Thanks for taking time to respond.

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