Beyond The Ceremony Podcast Episode 24: The Power of Words in Ceremony Writing with Julie Chudleigh of Latansani
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Every celebrant knows that words matter. But do you know why a single adverb can cause harm at a funeral? Or how a mixed metaphor can unravel an entire ceremony in seconds? The language you choose as a celebrant does not just describe a moment. It creates one. And in this episode, host Laura Crockett is joined by someone who has spent over 30 years thinking deeply about exactly that.
Julie Chudleigh of Latansani is a celebrant, one of our fabulous Academy of Modern Celebrancy mentors, a former head of English, and someone who came to celebrancy through a remarkable series of life events including loss, lockdown, and a training course that changed the way she thought about herself entirely. In this conversation, she brings her lifetime of expertise in language and education into the world of ceremony writing, and the result is one of the most genuinely useful episodes Beyond The Ceremony has ever recorded.
Latansani, by the way, is an Arabic word meaning forget-me-not. Which tells you everything you need to know about how Julie approaches her work.
“Language shapes everything. And in ceremonies, it lands more deeply than in any other set of circumstances.” Julie Chudleigh of Latansani
💡 In this episode, you’ll learn:
💎 Why the words you choose as a celebrant can either create genuine connection or unintentionally divide a room, and the surprisingly subtle ways that happens
💎 The problem with clichés, mixed metaphors, and accidental comedy in ceremony scripts, including why “he was the glue that held the sandwich together” is a cautionary tale every celebrant needs to hear
💎 Why adverbs are more dangerous than you think in a funeral script, and the single word that can reframe an entire death in a way that causes real harm to grieving families
💎 How deep listening and a genuine family script review process can be the difference between a ceremony that feels personal and one that accidentally excludes the very people it is meant to comfort
💎 The story of a funeral that went wrong, what happened, and what every celebrant can learn from it
💎 How Julie structures her consultation process to navigate multiple voices, conflicting opinions, and the moments when what a family tells you and what they actually need are two very different things
💎 Julie’s forthcoming poetry book, Ferocious Women, why she wrote it, and a live reading from the collection that gives a genuine glimpse of what language can do when it is used with real intention
💎 Why teachers, writers, and anyone with a background in communication often make some of the most instinctively skilled celebrants in the industry
✨ This episode is perfect for:
- Qualified celebrants who want to sharpen their scriptwriting and think more intentionally about the language they use in ceremonies
- Academy of Modern Celebrancy students who are working on their scripts right now and want to understand the deeper craft behind the words they are choosing
- Teachers, writers, or public speakers considering celebrancy who want to understand how their existing skills translate directly into ceremony work
- Anyone who has ever sat in a ceremony and felt that something in the language was slightly off, but could not quite put their finger on why
If you are exploring whether celebrancy could be the right career change for you, Episode 24 sits beautifully alongside our conversation with Marcia Bravo in Episode 21, where another career changer shares how she rebuilt her life and found her calling through celebrancy.
After this episode, you will never write a ceremony script the same way again. You will notice adverbs you never noticed before, question every metaphor you reach for, and understand why the most powerful thing you can do for a family or a couple is to listen with the intention of getting it exactly right.
🌟 Still exploring whether celebrancy could be your calling?
Take our free quiz to find out if this is the path for you.
MEET OUR GUEST, JUILIE CHUDLEIGH OF LATANSANI
Julie is a celebrant and former head of English with over 30 years in education across the UK and internationally. She founded Latansani, an Arabic word meaning forget-me-not, as the name for her celebrant business, and it captures exactly what she is about. Julie wants every ceremony she leads to be unforgettable, for all the right reasons. A mentor at the Academy of Modern Celebrancy, a lifelong lover of language, and a forthcoming poet, Julie brings a depth of craft to ceremony writing that is genuinely rare in the industry.
MEET YOUR HOST, LAURA CROCKETT
Laura has been an independent celebrant for 5 years and absolutely loves it. It makes her so proud seeing how far she’s come in that time. Laura feels like she’s found her calling and is so excited to keep progressing and growing her Celebrant business! Laura creates all kinds of ceremonies, including Weddings, Funerals, Vow Renewals, and Naming Ceremonies. Before she was a celebrant, Laura was a breakfast radio presenter, so her happy place is either at the front of a ceremony or sitting behind a microphone!
At home, Laura is married to Johnathan (a primary school teacher and her biggest cheerleader) and a mummy to two boys – Woody and Dougie. Laura is also a dog mum to Betty and Barney, the cockapoos! They can often be found curled up by her side when she’s writing scripts or lying by the radiator in the office when she’s on couples calls!
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💒 Beyond The Ceremony Podcast: Modern Celebrancy. Unfiltered. 💒
Everything you need to know about how to succeed as a modern celebrant. From top tips on how to create unforgettable ceremonies, to success stories from some of the best in the biz, we give you a behind-the-scenes look into life as a celebrant. Hosted by Laura Crockett, award-winning celebrant, radio personality, and host of Beyond The Ceremony.
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Team AMC
Our team of writers and contributors at The Academy of Modern Celebrancy are dedicated to educating Celebrants and helping them build thriving Celebrant businesses. Our team is made up of Celebrants and Industry experts dedicated to sharing their expertise with you.
The Academy of Modern Celebrancy also has a thriving community of 5000 celebrants that we are dedicated to helping grow their businesses and taking celebrancy from a hobby to a lifestyle.
AMC host the global celebrant summit, Celebrantopia, each year, where experts from the Celebrant world share their expertise and passion for Celebrancy.
The Academy of Modern Celebrancy has trained over 1000 celebrants, and employs award-winning Celebrant Mentors who know what it takes to make it in the industry. We train the best celebrants out there across the UK, Europe and the USA.
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