Your Celebrant’s Love Story Questions and How to Answer Them
So, your celebrant has sent through your wedding ceremony love story questions, and suddenly you can’t remember where you went on your first date. Totally normal. After 18 years and more than 1,200 couples married across Melbourne and the Yarra Valley, I can tell you almost everyone feels a little flutter of panic when that questionnaire lands in their inbox.
Here’s the good news. You’re not writing your love story. I am. This is not a graded English piece.
You don’t need perfect sentences, clever lines or a single ounce of poetry. You just need to tell me what happened and how it felt. Pulling it all together so it sounds completely like the two of you is my job, and honestly, it’s my favourite part of the whole process.
Your job:
- Answer the questions honestly, in whatever way comes naturally
- Dot points instead of polished paragraphs are recommended
- Messy memories give a storyteller the best material
- Anything you don’t want included, don’t write it in
- Hit send
My job:
- Pull out the moments that matter
- Balance the funny bits with the heartfelt bits
- Shape it all into a story that reflects who you are as a couple
- Tell it on the day so it lands with every single guest
Below are the exact questions I send every couple, how to answer them without overthinking it, and a stack of words and phrases for when your brain goes completely blank at 9pm with the questionnaire open. It will. Everyone’s does.
How does a celebrant write your love story?
Your celebrant sends you a set of questions about how you met, your first impressions, the proposal and what you love about each other. I write mine in the third person, using your first names, and blend the funny bits with the heartfelt bits so it feels completely like you and is wrapped up into a beautiful and scene-setting narrative.
How to Answer Your Celebrant’s Love Story Questions
Answer honestly, in whatever form comes naturally, and focus on specific moments rather than big descriptive words. Dot points, short answers and typos are all fine. You don’t need to write the story yourself. Your celebrant’s job is to shape your answers into a story that sounds like the two of you.
- Short answers are fine. Typos and grammar mistakes are all good
- Details beat summaries. Keep it simple with the details that matter
- Keep the weird bits. The specific, slightly embarrassing details are where the magic lives.
- Don’t try to write the story. Just tell me what happened and how it felt. Putting it together is my job.
The Love Story Questions I Ask Every Couple
These 14 questions give me everything I need to write and tell your story: how it started, what makes you tick as a couple and where you’re headed. How you answer them also tells me the style of love story you want, whether that’s big laughs because you’re throwing shade at each other amongst happy tears, epic love story Hollywood-style moments or a blend of both.
1. Where did you meet, and when?
The opening scene. A dating app, a dodgy setup, at the school lockers or maybe a few too many drinks were involved.
2. What were your first impressions of each other? What did you notice?
Often my favourite answer. More often than you’d think, one of you was smitten and the other barely noticed.
3. Where did you go on your first date, and how did it go?
Smooth, awkward or a total disaster, it all makes brilliant material.
4. When you first started dating, what impressed you most about each other?
The thing that made you think, okay, this one’s different.
5. Finish this sentence: I knew I loved my partner when ______
Big moment or tiny one. Often it’s the tiny ones that get everyone.
6. Who proposed? When, where and how?
All the details, the great moments and the bits that went sideways.
7. What are three words to describe your partner?
See below to help you out!
8. What do you love about your partner?
Give me at least one “like the time when” example. That’s where the magic lives.
9. What do you love doing together?
Weekend rituals, holidays, footy, the dog walk, the Friday night takeaway.
10. Finish this sentence: My partner has taught me ______
Patience, how to cook, how to relax. The funny answers count too.
11. What are the significant milestones or achievements you'd like to include?
A new house, a new pup, a big career win, a trip of a lifetime. Whatever made you proud as a team.
12. What are two or three things you think are vital to a successful relationship and marriage?
No wrong answers here. “Never go to bed hungry” is completely legitimate.
13. What are you looking forward to most about being married?
The big plans or the everyday stuff. Both are lovely.
14. What are your hopes for the future? What can't you wait for?
Kids, travel, renovations, a dog, a second dog.
Single words to describe your partner
Need some simple describing words? Pick one from a couple of columns for a good mix.
- kind
- loyal
- generous
- thoughtful
- gentle
- patient
- devoted
- big-hearted
- compassionate
- selfless
- funny
- cheeky
- adventurous
- spontaneous
- witty
- playful
- mischievous
- competitive
- curious
- a larrikin
- dependable
- steady
- grounded
- reliable
- calm
- level-headed
- honest
- trustworthy
- protective
- unflappable
- determined
- hardworking
- ambitious
- capable
- clever
- brave
- resilient
- organised
- driven
- creative
How Do I Describe My Partner for Our Wedding Ceremony?
Let’s get into more details. Skip the big generic adjectives and give a specific example instead. Rather than saying your partner is kind, describe the moment that proved it. Real details, like how they look after the dog or always fill up your car before a long drive, make a love story feel personal, funny and genuinely moving.
Here’s the thing. “Kind, loyal and caring” is a great start but could describe half the people at your wedding. Your guests might already know that your partner is lovely. What they don’t know is the story that proves it.
| Instead of this on its own | Try adding something like this |
| They’re kind | They drive Nan to bingo every Thursday and hear all the stories about the session. |
| They make me laugh | They narrate the dog’s entire day in a nature documentary voice. |
| They’re supportive | They sat in the car park with me for an hour before my nursing exam. |
| They’re adventurous | They booked flights to Japan randomly on a whim with absolutely no plan. |
| They’re hardworking | They’re on the tools by 6.30am and still somehow beat me home to cook dinner. |
| They’re a great listener | They remember the name of every person I’ve ever complained about at work and support my venting! |
| They’re my best friend | They’re the first person I want to tell everything to. Good news, bad news and gossip. |
The easy formula: when you write a descriptive word, you can follow it with an example that symbolises this behaviour. They’re generous, like the time when they gave up their footy final tickets so my brother could go. Done. That’s gold.
Words and Phrases to Describe Your Partner
Still staring at a blank page? Borrow these. Swap in your partner’s name, mix and match, and tweak them until they sound like you. Then, wherever you can, add your own “like the time when” example.
How they make you feel
- I feel like the best version of myself when I’m with them.
- They make the ordinary days feel like the good days.
- I’ve never once had to pretend to be someone else around them.
- They make me feel safe enough to be completely ridiculous.
- With them, I never feel like I’m doing life on my own.
- Home is wherever they are, even if that’s a leaking tent at a festival.
What you love about them
- They show up. Every time, for everyone.
- They’re the first to help a mate move house and the last to leave the clean-up.
- They remember the little things, like how I take my coffee and which footy team I can’t stand.
- Their laugh. The real one, not the polite one.
- They’re calm when I’m not.
- They’re fiercely loyal to the people they love.
- They have the biggest heart of anyone I know, and they’ll be mortified I said that in front of everyone.
What they’ve taught you
- They taught me it’s okay to slow down.
- I’m braver because of them.
- They’ve taught me patience, mostly by testing it.
- They believed in me before I believed in myself.
- They’ve made me a better friend, a better listener and a slightly better cook.
The funny bits
- They’re the only person who can make me laugh when I’m hangry.
- They have never once loaded the dishwasher correctly, and I love them anyway.
- They steal the doona every single night and I’d still choose them.
- They’re competitive about everything, including who can fold a fitted sheet. Neither of us can.
- They’re a better parent to our dog than I’ll ever be, and the dog knows it.
- They think they can sing. They can’t. I wouldn’t change it for anything.
What you can’t wait for
- I can’t wait to grow old and slightly cranky together.
- I can’t wait for every adventure, the big overseas trips and the small Sunday ones.
- I’m looking forward to building a life, a home and maybe a veggie patch that actually survives.
- I can’t wait to finally call them my husband, my wife, my person.
- Most of all, I’m looking forward to the boring bits, because the boring bits with them are some of the best bits.
Wedding Love Story FAQs
How long is the love story in a wedding ceremony?
Most love stories run for around three to five minutes. That’s long enough to get the laughs and the happy tears, set the scene for why we are there celebrating you, and short enough that nobody starts wondering how long until canapés.
Do we have to include a love story in our ceremony?
No. Legally, a wedding ceremony in Australia needs only a few must-haves: the celebrant’s legal words, your legal vows, two witnesses over 18 and the signing of the paperwork. Everything else is optional. That said, the love story is the bit guests talk about afterwards, so I’d strongly recommend it.
What if everyone already knows our story?
I hear this one a lot. “Jules, everyone knows how we met. Nobody needs to hear it again.” Here’s the thing. Time and time again, bridal party members, friends and family come up to me after the ceremony to say they’d forgotten that bit about the first date or had no idea how the proposal really went down. They loved the reminder, and they loved learning something new.
Your story, whether it runs for two minutes or five, is what makes the ceremony about you. It reminds everyone exactly why we’re all here.
From Sam: ‘Julie captured our story perfectly and created such a relaxed and heartfelt atmosphere.’
Do we write our love story ourselves?
No. You answer the questions, and I do the writing and the telling. Your only job is to give me the good stuff.
Can we keep our answers a secret from each other?
Absolutely. Fill in your answers separately and send them straight to me. Your partner hears them for the first time at the ceremony, and the reactions are priceless.
What if we're not soppy or romantic?
Perfect, of course I can do romantic but more-chilled means you’re my kind of people as well. Plenty of my couples would rather be roasted than serenaded. Tell me that, and I’ll write a story that’s heavy on the laughs and light on the cheese.
From Eliza, ‘So many of our guests commented on how fantastic Julie was, striking the perfect balance between romance and wit.’
What are some good words to describe my partner?
Good words to describe your partner include kind, loyal, funny, cheeky, dependable, calm, adventurous and determined. The trick is to pair each word with a real example. “Patient” is nice. “Patient enough to teach me to reverse park a trailer” is a story.
Can I use these words and phrases in my vows?
Yes. The same rule applies, specific beats generic every time. For more help writing your vows, check out my: Wedding Vows Guide
Send It Through and Leave the Rest to Me
That’s it. Answer the questions as best you can, send them through and let me take it from there. You’ve accomplished your homework!
I’ll turn your dot points, half sentences and 9pm brain dumps into a story that sounds exactly like the two of you. Then I’ll tell it on the day, so every single guest feels it.
Yet to book a celebrant? Whether you’re marrying on a Yarra Valley winery lawn, up in the Dandenong Ranges or in the middle of Melbourne, I’d love to share your story.
Check my availability and say hello at melbournecelebrantjulie.com.au.
Jules x
