[The Typing Baker] How to Write Well, Start by Asking Good Questions

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] Kang Won-guk, former secretary who wrote speeches for the late former Presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun during the governments of the National Congress and the Participatory Government, has published a new book titled I Write as I Speak.

After leaving the Blue House, Kang published his first book, Presidential Writing, in February 2014. It became a bestseller. In December of the same year, he also released Chairman's Writing, wanting to let people know that he had been writing for companies for 17 years as well. However, after the Park Geun-hye administration took office, requests for lectures to Kang suddenly stopped, as companies were reluctant to engage someone who had worked under the Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun governments.

Kang also wrote speeches for the late Kim Woo-joong, former chairman of Daewoo Group, and Cho Seok-rae, honorary chairman of Hyosung Group. When Kim Woo-joong became chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), Kang followed him there and assisted with speechwriting in the chairman’s secretariat. Through that connection, he joined the speechwriting office for President Kim Dae-jung. After leaving the Blue House, he helped write speeches when Cho Seok-rae served as FKI chairman. He is a 'pro' who specialized in writing for the kings of politics and business.

"Were you happy to meet me? Do you believe in my love? When I think of you, I become curious about everything."

This is part of the lyrics from singer Lee Sun-hee’s song I Want to Know. Kang opens I Write as I Speak with this phrase to emphasize the importance of asking good questions to write well. The lyrics of I Want to Know consist solely of questions posed to a loved one. Kang stresses that writing is a process of asking and answering oneself, that all writing begins with a question, and that a decisive question becomes the theme of the writing. Along with questioning, he presents observation, empathy, insight, criticism, emotion, and imagination as the seven fundamental powers of writing?essential for finding good material.

No matter how excellent the ingredients, if the cooking skills are poor, the food will taste bad; similarly, good material does not necessarily lead to good writing. Writing skills are necessary. As the title suggests, Kang emphasizes that writing as if speaking is the best method.

Kang once worked in a publishing house’s editorial department. When he asked a famous author to write a book, the author declined, saying he was too busy. Kang then requested the author to give five two-hour lectures instead. The author agreed, and Kang recorded the lectures, transcribed them, and compiled them into a book. In effect, he wrote as if speaking.

When spoken words are converted into writing, the text naturally becomes conversational and easy to read. Speaking means someone is listening. Therefore, writing as if speaking allows the writer to anticipate the reader’s reactions. Also, writing as if speaking helps eliminate unnecessary parts. When speaking, if the core message is not delivered promptly, the listener becomes bored. Showing off knowledge unnecessarily often leads to criticism.

Kang must have deeply realized the advantages of writing as if speaking, since the speeches he wrote for presidents and chairmen were meant to be spoken. He emphasizes that speeches are written texts but are closer to spoken language, so to speak well, one must write well.

The book introduces various tips for writing well and speaking effectively. However, since writing ultimately depends on the reader of this book, readers should refer to the tips and develop their own techniques.

For example, Kang admits that one traditional writing method, outlining, does not suit him. He confesses he lacks the ability to create outlines. Outlining means knowing the beginning and end of the writing, but he feels he cannot envision the final form of his writing. Rather, he points out that while writing, better ideas often come up than initially planned, and outlines can sometimes suppress good ideas by restricting creativity.

(I Write as I Speak / Kang Won-guk / Wisdom House)

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.