How to Write Like MLK Jr.
6 keys to compelling communication
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Ever hit ‘publish,’ only to feel an immediate twinge of anxiety?
Will anyone bother to read this? In our fast-moving information age, it’s harder than ever to be heard. Clickbait chums the waters, drawing readers away from nutritious content.
How do you cut through the clutter as a writer?
How to Capture An Audience
Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech took less than twenty minutes to deliver, but its impact has lasted more than six decades.
By the time he reached his final crescendo, “Free at last! Free at last!” 250,000 people stood spellbound.
If you want your words to hit hard and sink deep, here’s six principles from MLK’s speech you can include in your own writing and speaking.
6 Keys to Compelling Communication
Thanks to Drew Dixon, a fellow editor at Penguin Random House, for sharing this paradigm. It was originally taught by Eric Geiger.
1. Burning Platform
Do you frame the larger need and speak to the fear of loss?
Tell readers what they stand to lose if they don’t read your writing. Don’t offer something nice-to-know; show them why they need-to-know what you have to say.
Explain what’s really wrong, and why it matters—not just in a general way, but specifically and urgently for the reader.
In his speech, MLK does this brilliantly:
“It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality.”
2. Golden Tomorrow
Do you paint a picture of a better future?
Writing must deal with darkness, but it should also point to the light. Paint a picture of the world that’s possible if readers believe your message. Give them hope.
MLK’s recurring refrain, “I have a dream,” lifts our eyes to a brighter horizon:
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”
3. Wake-Up Call
Do you create urgency and call people to action?
Compelling communicators call people to action. Encourage readers to get off the couch and do something. Start a movement.
MLK isn’t just inspiring the crowd; he’s mobilizing them:
“We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism.”
4. Mind Stretch
Do you enlarge faith and spark imagination with audacious, God-sized goals?
Too many writers play it safe on the page. I can’t tell you how many book proposals on my desk have potential, if only the author would trust her ideas more.
Be audacious. Show people the grandness of your vision. If it’s not bold, it’s boring. This doesn’t mean you should exaggerate or manipulate your message. Instead, dig deep and find the most visceral way to express your idea.
To a nation weary from decades of slavery, segregation, and suffering, MLK’s vision was audacious. He dared to believe justice and freedom were still possible:
“We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.”
5. God Smile
Do you clarify your biblical basis and show how God’s heart is pleased?
If, like the reverend Dr. King, faith is important to you (as it is to me), it’s important to root our words in scriptural principles. Even if you don’t quote actual Bible verses, show how the problems you address are ones God cares about. Use kingdom logic.
What sets MLK apart as a leader of the civil rights movement is his insistence on peaceful protest. He embraced the ethics of Jesus, choosing to love his enemies instead of seeking vengeance:
“But there is something that I must say … in the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.”
6. Common Denominator
Do you build an emotional connection based on shared history?
Good writing wraps its arms around readers and pulls them into a circle of likeminded friends. It breaks down barriers and builds bridges. In your writing, find common ground with your readers. Show them that, despite your differences, you can make a difference together.
MLK’s final words read more like a benediction—a prayer that brings diverse people together in the name of freedom:
“When we allow freedom to ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, Black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: Free at last. Free at last. Thank God almighty, we are free at last.”
Hone Your Message
Readers still know the difference between artificial and authentic. They may be entertained and distracted for awhile (aren’t we all?), but communicators who bring true value will rise to the top.
Test the sturdiness and stickiness of your ideas with these 6 questions:
Have I made it clear that the stakes are high? (burning platform)
Did I point to a better tomorrow? (golden future)
Is there a clear call-to-action? (wake-up call)
Am I activating readers’ imagination? (mind stretch)
Are my ideas morally defendable? (God smile)
Have I created an emotional connection with my readers? (common denominator)
I’m rooting for you,
Will
PS - Hey if you missed the news, I’m rolling out a course on “How to Build a Book Proposal” that stands out. Join the waitlist here.
Will is the founder of Writers Circle, a community to help writers sharpen their skills and publish their work for the glory of Jesus. He is a senior editor at Waterbrook and Multnomah—an imprint of Penguin Random House.
This is gold. As a retired pastor/preacher with a passion for using my words and my voice to encourage and inspire others, this is so helpful. I'm editing a Palm Sunday post today, and looking at it through this new lens. Thank you!
So helpful. I have a feeling I’ll be scanning for these now - both in my own writing and in the writing of others. Over the past year or so, I’ve been working on creating a stronger "common denominator" in my writing. I saw someone else (I think Hunter Harris?) describe it as sitting on the same side of the table as your reader (even if you differ from them in some ways). Before, I’d often lapse into writing AT someone from my past or present (and not in the friendliest way). This could sometimes feel like a release at the time of writing, but ultimately it left me feeling worse and didn’t feel as though I was fully embodying my ethical principles.