A Narrative of Strength
A cinematic, cross-cultural ceremony weaving architecture, dance, and a literary reference into a cohesive narrative about strength in difference.
A Ceremony Written With Intention
A wedding ceremony should never feel like boring slog to be endured before the reception or impersonally drawn from a fill-in-the-blank template. It should function as the narrative anchor of the entire celebration and should be deliberate, cohesive, and built to reflect who you are.
As a professional writer and historian, I design custom ceremony scripts that are personal without being cliché, inclusive without being performative, and structurally sound from first line to final pronouncement.
Through a focused consultation process, I identify the themes, tensions, humor, and values that define your relationship and shape them into a ceremony that reads clearly, speaks naturally, and feels unmistakably yours.
COMMISSION
Ceremony Script Commission
For couples who have chosen a friend or family member to officiate but want the ceremony itself written with care and intention.
In this arrangement, I work as a ceremony writer, shaping your story into a fully structured script that your officiant can deliver confidently. The result is a ceremony that feels deliberate, personal, and polished rather than improvised.
Available worldwide in English, Spanish, French, Italian, and Irish.
What the process includes:
- Narrative Design Consultation – A virtual conversation where we explore the history of your relationship, the tone you want to set, and the cultural or personal elements that matter most to you.
- A Custom Ceremony Script – A fully written ceremony crafted from your story and delivered as a polished document suitable for printing or sharing with your officiant.
- Officiant Guidance – Subtle stage directions woven into the script (such as pacing cues, transitions, and audience moments) so the ceremony unfolds naturally and reads well when spoken aloud.
New York City Ceremonies
For couples marrying in New York City, I am also a registered and licensed officiant authorized to perform marriages under New York law.
If you would like, I can:
- Officiate the ceremony – delivering the script we have designed together and guiding the ceremony from beginning to end.
or
- Sign the marriage license – allowing a friend or family member to lead the ceremony while ensuring the legal requirements of the State of New York are properly fulfilled. This arrangement allows couples to keep the ceremony personal while also ensuring that the marriage is legally solemnized and properly recorded.
Narrative In Practice
Below are three ceremonies I designed for three couples. Each one reflects a different narrative and tonal approach (literary, irreverent, and civil) shaped around the couple’s voice and setting.
Under the Clock
An irreverent, Studio 8H–inflected elopement staged in Grand Central Terminal, blending observational humor, mock announcements, pop-culture readings, and classic music cues into a brief ceremony that feels unmistakably NYC.
Brownstone Civil Ceremony
A warm yet civil ceremony grounded in gravitas, designed for a second marriage where lived experience, adult children, and a blended family are acknowledged with gratitude and dignity. No schmaltz, no fuss, but lots of love.
A Narrative of Strength
Avery and Jordan
Venue: Long Island City, New York
Opening
Good evening.
Welcome to this borough, a place built by migration, reinvention, and movement. We have come together to celebrate that heritage and to build upon it in love. But today is not the beginning of Avery and Jordan’s love. It is the public naming, the public staking of a flag, of a choice they have already made.
Jordan and Avery have chosen one another in private, and today, they speak that choice aloud in the presence of those who support them most ferociously.
Entry of families, friends, and grooms: “The Eternal Vow” – composed by Tan Dun
Acknowledgment of Lineage
Avery and Jordan do not stand here alone. Avery carries with him the precision and perseverance of a family who crossed the Pacific and rebuilt their lives in a new language. And Jordan has Brooklyn in the marrow of his bones and Cameroon in his blood.
These boys will pull forward into their marriage a lineage shaped by resilience, by rhythm, by adaptation across continents. It’s a strong start, a unification, because marriage does not dissolve origin. Instead, it asks us to pause and ponder…
How will we honor that which formed us, while independently building something new? In that way, today is not the merging of two separate identities.
It is the partnership of two vibrantly alive people who know exactly where they come from and who choose, with clarity, to move forward together into an exciting unified life.
The Story
It was a night at a museum.
Avery was studying a centuries-old city map. If you know Avery, this shouldn’t be a surprise. He was tracing transit systems and structural design. And Jordan? Jordan was sketching choreography inspired by the same artifact.
They were looking at the same image, but they saw different truths. Avery saw infrastructure, and Jordan saw movement.
Avery thought Jordan was chaotic. Jordan thought Avery was formidable. Cinema? Maybe. Love? Inevitable.
They began debating whether cities are shaped more by policy or by people. You know… Robert Moses stuff. Again, if you know them, you’re probably not surprised. And the debate never ended.
Avery learned that not everything meaningful can be diagrammed. Jordan learned that structure supports creativity instead of suppressing it.
Eventually, they realized as humans that they didn’t need to be similar, but collaborative, complementary, parts. It worked. So here we are.
Reflection
There are clichés about opposites attracting, but there are usually kernels of truth in clichés. There is real intimacy in loving someone whose mind moves differently than your own.
Avery plans years ahead, and Jordan trusts the present pulse. Avery speaks carefully, and Jordan speaks fully. Between calculation and instinct, they found alignment. For them, love is not fusion but participation and staying in conversation when perspectives clash.
It is choosing respect over certainty and the discipline of repair. The strongest bridges hold because opposing forces are balanced just so. And in dance, two bodies can lean away from one another and still remain connected through trust. These men know their crafts and one another.
This will serve them very well.
Literary Moment
In Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Li Mu Bai says:
“Because of your love, I will never be a lonely spirit.”
It is not a line about dependency. It is about recognition.
To be known across difference, across temperament, and across background, is one of the most profound and gratifying human experiences.
Avery and Jordan do not promise to eliminate loneliness from one another’s lives, nor to bend and sacrifice themselves in joining together.
They promise presence, witness, and dialogue. They promise strength.
The Vows
Avery and Jordan, you have written vows in your own words. Before you speak them, I ask: Do you come here freely and without reservation, ready to commit yourselves to one another in marriage?
We do.
Will you continue choosing one another in growth, in tension, in strength, and in joy, as you both evolve?
We will.
Please share your vows.
[Personal vows spoken.]
French Moment
Avery et Jordan, l’amour n’est pas une coïncidence. C’est un choix.
Un choix renouvelé dans la patience, dans le respect, et dans la présence.
Aujourd’hui, vous ne promettez pas la facilité. Vous promettez la fidélité à l’un l’autre.
Ring Exchange
These rings are circles because commitment is renewed. They are strong, forged metal. May they represent Avery and Jordan’s courageous vows.
Avery, please repeat after me:
I choose you with clarity and intention. [pause]
I promise to remain curious and to remain accountable, [pause]
and to keep building with you. [pause]
Jordan, please repeat after me:
I choose you with clarity and intention. [pause]
I promise to remain curious and to remain accountable, [pause]
and to keep building with you. [pause]
Pronouncement
By the authority vested in me by the State of New York,
I now pronounce you married.
You may seal your vows with a kiss.
Music Cue
(Instrumental intro of “Jerusalema” by Master KG begins softly.)
Closing Spoken Over Music
To everyone gathered here:
Avery and Jordan have chosen one another not because they are identical,
but because they are strong and deliberate.
They come from different histories, different rhythms,
different ways of seeing the same world.
Today, in your witness, they chose alignment and commitment.
May their home be a place where structure and movement coexist. Where Brooklyn and Cameroon and Taiwan are honored. Where debate remains lively, and respect remains steady.
Avery and Jordan: Keep building. Keep moving. Congratulations.
(Music swells as they recess.)
Under the Clock
🎶 Cue 1: “Homeward Bound” – Simon & Garfunkel
(Starts slightly too loud. Turn down the volume for the sake of the public.)
Opening
Okay. Hi. Hello. If you are headed to the 6:03 to White Plains, we support you. If you are standing still… welcome. You are now part of this. No, we are not part of the cast about the musical with the cake. We don’t have cake.
Maya and Ethan are getting married here because this is where their relationship started. Moving, slightly impatient, and arguing a little bit but figuring it out. You see… they met on a delayed train.
Maya made a bold comment about the MTA. She couldn’t help it. She is from the Bay Area. So Ethan laughed… at Maya… and that was risky. But it worked out for him.
Mock Announcement Beat
Attention please: The Commitment Bound Marriage Train is now boarding.
This train will make the following stops:
Shared rent. Shared groceries. Shared Calendar. And occasional dramatic debates about What Do You Want For Dinner? There are no transfers.
Thank you.
Why Here
Grand Central is a place of arrivals and departures. It’s loud. It’s chaotic. It’s alive.
The ceiling is really pretty.
Maya and Ethan like loud, chaotic, pretty things.
They didn’t want quiet perfection or simplicity. They wanted real life happening around them.
Marriage is not an escape from noise. It’s a promise made within noise and a vow to thrive despite it. So let’s go!
Reading Moment
Now.
We aren’t doing elevated and literary today. Maya and Ethan chose this. Kendra… please read.
KENDRA: “I was hiding under your porch because I love you.”
– Dug, Up
“People always do crazy things when they’re in love.”
– Meg, Hercules
“My dream wouldn’t be complete without you in it.”
– Princess Tiana, The Princess and the Frog
Officiant Beat
And honestly? That just about covers it.
Love isn’t complicated, folks. It’s showing up. It’s doing something mildly irrational. Like… this. And realizing your future only makes sense with someone else in it.
But on a slightly more serious note, in a city this big you could both have remained strangers, and you didn’t. You kept choosing conversation and curiosity. You kept choosing each other.
That’s pretty awesome! It’s impressive. Heck. It’s disciplined, and in this day and age, it’s rare.
The Question
So with that in mind, Maya and Ethan,
Do you understand that marriage includes:
Shared rent, shared thermostat settings, occasional unsolicited opinions about public transit, and demands to know what the other wants for dinner?
We do.
Do you promise to keep choosing each other when the train is delayed, when work is stressful, and when life is louder than expected?
We do.
Then let’s exchange rings.
🎶 Cue 2: “Can’t Help Falling in Love” – Elvis Presley (instrumental, low)
Ring Exchange
These rings are small. This building is… not. Your life will not be small. In a city where you could disappear into the crowd, you chose not to.
Ethan, repeat after me:
Maya, I choose you in chaos and in calm.
On platforms and in kitchens.
In ambition and in rest.
In this big city,
and wherever we go.
Maya:
Ethan, I choose you with humor and honesty.
With patience and stubbornness.
With steadiness and joy.
No matter where the train of life takes us.
Please place the rings on the correct hands. Yes, Ethan. That one. The left one. Excellent.
Pronouncement
By the authority vested in me by the State of New York, and in full awareness that several tourists are now emotionally invested and providing you with free photography services…
I pronounce you married. You may kiss.
(Applause from strangers. Possibly one awkward “Wooo!” Hopefully no booing.)
🎶 Cue 3: “Three Little Birds” – Bob Marley begins
Photo Beat
We will now pause briefly for a photo and flee before security arrives to politely ask what is happening.
Under the clock. Yes. Absolutely iconic.
Closing Over Music
To everyone who stopped… we’re sorry if we distracted you. Restaurants have a slight grace period for reservations. You just witnessed something joyful in the middle of an ordinary busy day.
You’re welcome.
Maya and Ethan. May your love be steady enough for delays, flexible enough for reroutes, bold enough for departures, and relaxed enough to remember… Every little thing is gonna be alright.
Now go… catch your train.
Congratulations.
Brownstone Civil Ceremony
Venue: Wheelchair-Accessible Brownstone
Good afternoon. [pause] We are gathered here to witness the marriage of Jim and Susie. This is not a beginning but a continuation. Jim and Susie come to this day with full lives behind them. They have both raised families and carried responsibilities. They have endured losses and learned lessons. They come before us not searching for completion, but choosing one another in companionship.
At this stage of life, marriage is not about reinvention but steadiness, and saying, with clarity: “I love you, and I would like you beside me.”
Their adult children, family, and friends are witnesses to this love and this deliberate choice. It is an honor.
There is a Jewish teaching that says: “It is not good for a person to be alone.”
This is a simple idea, an honest idea. Human beings move beside others only when we choose to, and Jim and Susie have made that choice.
The Book of Ecclesiastes offers another quiet truth:
“Two are better than one… for if they fall, one will lift up the other.”
This is also practical wisdom. Life can be long and heavy. Partnership means there is someone to steady you on ordinary days and difficult days and joyful days… someone to lift and be lifted.
Jim and Susie: You come here together understanding that marriage is both a personal promise and a legal commitment under the laws of the State of New York. It creates rights and responsibilities. It requires respect, patience, and honesty. Entering into this freely and without reservation, I ask you both:
Jim, do you take Susie to be your lawful wife, to share your life in mutual support and companionship?
I do.
Susie, do you take Jim to be your lawful husband, to share your life in mutual support and companionship?
I do.
Jim and Susie have chosen to wear their existing rings, honoring their children’s parents and they have already lived while stepping forward together.
Jim, please touch Susie’s ring and repeat:
Susie, I choose to move forward with you.
Susie, please touch Jim’s ring and repeat:
Jim, I choose to move forward with you.
Jim and Susie, you have spoken your vows clearly and without hesitation, and you understand your rights and responsibilities. Therefore, by the authority vested in me by the State of New York, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may share a kiss.
To your families: Thank you for standing here. Blended families are not formed in a single moment. They are built over time through patience, courtesy, love, holidays, and shared meals.
Jim and Susie, may your home be steady and sure and joyful. May your partnership be respectful and affirming. May the years ahead be peaceful and well-shared.
Congratulations.
Get in Touch
Meet Kelsey Maurine
Historian. Writer. Narrative Strategist.Kelsey Maurine is a historian and writer who specializes in crafting narrative wedding ceremonies rooted in authentic lived histories.
The Scholar's Approach
I believe a wedding ceremony should be more than just the "boring part" before the party. It should be the narrative anchor of your entire celebration.
My background is not in generic event planning, but in History and Literature. I hold a Bachelor of Arts in History from Saint Mary’s College with minors completed at the University of Notre Dame and a Postgraduate Certificate in Modern European History from the University of Edinburgh.
Sounds fancy! But why does this matter for your wedding? Because historians don’t use templates. We rely on primary sources. I treat your relationship (your memories, your letters, your inside jokes) as the primary source… the text. I then pull from my expertise as a writer and weave those details into a ceremony that feels structurally sound and deeply, authentically you.
The Person Behind the Vows
Who am I? I am a recent arrival to Brooklyn after living in France and Chicago. When I am not writing ceremonies or navigating the City Clerk’s office, you can usually find me:
- Writing: whether it’s historical fiction, poetry, polemics, or screenplays.
- Reading: I have a lifelong fascination with the works of Victor Hugo, Charles Dickens, and the Enlightenment.
- At Home: Likely being supervised by my cats and my son.
- Traveling: I love to see the world and the people in it.
Credentials
- Ordained Minister, American Marriage Ministries (Since 2017).
- Licensed Non-Denominational Wedding Officiant, City of New York