Scribe Coursesby Scribe Media
Playbook · Marketing · Page free, PDF by email

The Scribe Speaking Playbook

A long, practical page on turning a book into speaking invitations and, over time, paid talks. Seven steps, each backed by short clips of Scribe authors explaining what they did. You can read the whole thing without signing up; a checklist PDF is emailed if you want it.

By Scribe MediaChecked October 20, 2026
What it is
A step-by-step playbook on one web page, with video clips and transcripts of each clip.
Format
Read and watch. Optional PDF checklist plus a TEDx speaker scorecard.
Length
One long page in seven steps, then a section on how a TEDx team scores talks. One sitting.
What it asks
Nothing to read the page. Your details if you want the PDF emailed.

What it covers

The playbook opens with a question most speaking advice skips: is speaking right for you at all? It sends you back to your book's objectives and says plainly that plenty of authors reach their goals without a stage. If speaking does put you in front of the people you need, it lays out seven steps, in order:

  1. Know exactly who you are talking to. Go niche, not glamorous.
  2. Pick the right stages. Find the events your ideal audience actually attends. Start with TEDx, not TED.
  3. Nail one fresh, specific angle. Your book is the content; the work is the angle that ties it to something current.
  4. Build your proof. A simple speaker page, a short reel, and footage from every talk, including free ones.
  5. Find the right person and pitch like a human. The actual event manager, a short pitch, polite follow-up.
  6. Make the ask and set your fee. Expect early talks to be unpaid, ask for their budget first, and sell more than an hour on stage.
  7. Stay true to your brand. Your talk, reel and topic should match who you are.

The last section adapts a real speaker evaluation form a TEDx organizing team used, with identifying details removed: 15 criteria in four groups, each scored 1 to 5, for 75 points in total.

Who it is for

Authors who have a book, or will soon, and want it to open doors to stages: founders, consultants, coaches, executives, experts. It is also worth reading before you write, if speaking is one of your main reasons for the book, because step 3 (a fresh, specific angle) should shape how you position the book in the first place.

What you come away with

  • An order of operations, so you are not pitching big conferences before you have footage.
  • Concrete tactics from authors in their own words: mailing the book to the exact people you want to work with, offering two topics instead of one, asking for book purchases when there is no speaker budget.
  • A way to score your own talk before you apply to a TEDx event.
  • If you request it: a checklist PDF that puts every step on one page, plus three people's systems laid out in detail.

What it asks of you

Reading the page asks nothing. The "email me the playbook" buttons ask for your details and send the PDF and TEDx scorecard to your inbox; that puts you in touch with Scribe. Doing the playbook asks a lot more: building a speaker page, giving free talks, filming them, and pitching people one by one. None of that happens quickly, and the page does not pretend it does.

How to get the most from it

  • Answer the first question honestly. If your buyers do not go to events, a podcast or direct outreach may serve you better. Skipping speaking is a legitimate answer.
  • Write down 25 to 30 names. Step 2 suggests picking that many ideal people and asking which events they never miss. Do this before you search for conferences.
  • Draft two talk titles from your book. Each should be specific to one audience.
  • Score yourself with the TEDx criteria even if you never apply to TEDx. They are a good test of any talk.

Its honest limits

  • Every example is a Scribe author who did well. The page is clear these are individual results, but you do not hear from authors who tried and stalled.
  • It is about getting booked, not about speaking well. For writing and delivering the talk itself, you will need other help.
  • It has a point of view that a book is the key credential for speakers. That is often true for experts and less so for entertainers or celebrities.
  • TEDx is a trademark of TED Conferences, and the page notes Scribe is not affiliated with TED.

Before and after

Before: know what your book is for. Chapter 6 of The Scribe Method, Figure out your book objectives, is the playbook's own starting point.

Alongside: the Author Hour episode on turning a book into a speaking business goes deeper on one author's approach. The Scribe Blog's guide to getting a TED or TEDx talk covers the application side.

After: the use your book for business path puts speaking next to the other ways authors put a book to work.