Last changed on
Fri September 27, 2024 at 6:19 AM MST
Email: kinan.cehajic@gmail.com
Anything enclosed by a "~" are not part of the flow/performance, just my intermittent notes. Specific paradigms listed below. Good luck!
PF, LD, CX, BQ
I'll disregard anything over a 10 second grace period. Put me in an email chain for CX, it's your call for LD. I'm okay with spreading so long as I can still flow it. You can call cards off-time. Flex prep, sitting, disclosure, etc. are all fine if all competitors agree.
Competed debate for 5 years, so do with that what you will. Can't believe I have to say this but, if you are in PF, do not run a K nor a plan. Both are fine for policy and LD. Non-topical Ks/plans are fine. If you give me an OTR, actually follow it. Good signposting will help. Please don't make me vote on extinction/nuke war. I don't mean you can't run it but if you lose to it, then you probably just didn't debate well. Cross won't generally be part of flow/RFD unless something is explicitly conceded, so put it in your next speech and I'll flow it. Give me a weighing mechanism in final speech if applicable, which it almost always is. Please don't make me go off my gut. Make it an easy round to judge.
DUO, DUET, HI, DI
I've competed in Duo and Duet, so I know some of the tech but I'm probably going to vote up whatever is more moving so if it's the funniest/most dramatic. Cleanly blocked sight lines, clear delivery of lines, and well timed pauses never hurt anyone.
OO
This is easily my favorite speech category. Below is a short paragraph on what I'm looking for:
I love an interesting topic but obviously that won't win you the round. Something different than usual is still appreciated and noted, though. First and foremost, I don't want your hook to go on too long, and make sure your hook actually transitions well into your piece. Choppy transitions to make a cheesy joke don't reflect well. Introduce your structure to me right at the beginning. I want to know what three points you're going to cover right away. Then, actually follow your structure and give me distinct transitions into the next body paragraph. Just walking to the other side of the room alone doesn't mean you transitioned. Don't give me personal anecdotes as your sole evidence for a trend you mention unless it's something that truly is universal human experience. When you wrap up with your call to action, make sure that it a) addresses your introductory hook and question, b) mentions your the topics of your three body paragraphs and c) is actually applicable and not general. The last point there is extremely important. I've seen too many well done OO's that bring me to a weak call to action that does not actually give the audience let alone average person an actual course of action they can take. An easy way to avoid this is by working in points that direct you towards a call to action throughout your speech.
This is not an exhaustive list and I'll add more guidelines as I think of them but the above are what I'll generally be voting off of.
INFO
I'm probably a lay judge here. I appreciate good boards/visual aids that are engaging but not too distracting. Don't make visuals the entire point of your presentation though. The main focal point should be the speaker.