Author Archives: Ananth Veluvali

The statement of significance is an important, albeit underutilized tool in extemporaneous speaking. In a single 10 second statement, your judge will either feel connected or distanced from your topic. Thus, nailing this part of the speech is critical to being a successful speaker. In this article, learn some tips about how to utilize statementsContinue reading “The Statement of Significance: An Underutilized Tool”

In April of 2020, I was fortunate enough to interview René Otero, the 2019 IX NSDA National Champion. The paraphrased version of that interview can be found below. The full version can be found on our podcast, the Extemper’s Bible! This article was written by Ananth Veluvali.

Citing a book (or books!) is one of the most impressive things you can do in an extemp speech. Beyond presenting an opportunity to cite distinguished scholars, books typically hold complex political, social, and economic theories that add sophistication to your speeches. Below is a list of a few books (with their summaries) you mayContinue reading “Book Summaries: Part 2”

The following is the ultimate guide for novices on how to succeed in extemporaneous speaking. Covered are the following sections: what is extemp, what goes into a speech, the art of substructure, confidence in this activity, free extemp resources, and concluding commentary. Since this is an ongoing project, we will be continually updating this resource.Continue reading “The Ultimate Novice Guide to Extemp”

Citing a book (or books!) is one of the most impressive things you can do in an extemp speech. Beyond presenting an opportunity to cite distinguished scholars, books typically hold complex political, social, and economic theories that add sophistication to your speeches. Below is a list of a few books (with their summaries) you mayContinue reading “Book Summaries: Part 1”

Introduction The attention-getting device, better known by its moniker the AGD, is one of the most important parts of an extemp speech. Despite this, most extempers recycle the same 2-3 AGDs for an entire tournament, often resulting in strenuous ties between their opener and the topic. Fortunately, it requires little effort to produce stronger attentionContinue reading “The Art of AGDs”