Offering A Little Speeches Therapy

Melanie Hunter TUES25JUNE24

t’s pretty incredible just how much power a 5-minute speech can have over an entire day.

It can make or break the afters at a wedding, for example, setting the tone for the night to follow, and maybe even the marriage to come.

And let’s not forget the poor, nervous sod stepping up to the mic, crumpled – and hastily scribbled – paper in hand. For them, that 5-minute speech has the power to ruin not just their day but entire weeks leading up to it, as they worry about getting the tone, the humour, the sentimentality, just right.

As the old saying goes, speeches are like dresses – they should be long enough to cover the essentials, but short enough to keep people interested.

“There’s so much that can go wrong when it comes to a speech,” says Melanie Hunter as we meet up at her Windgates hideaway on this grey Tuesday. “Trying to be funny and heartfelt at the same time is a tricky balancing act, and there’s often a tendency for people to panic. And that’s when they resort to the crude, or the rude, or something that seemed funny to them at 4 o’clock that morning, when they couldn’t sleep, worrying about their stand-up routine.”

All of which may explain why custom speech writer Melanie Hunter is so busy these days. And why she’s been winning so many awards – including The Creative Professional Award at last week’s Network Ireland Wicklow Businesswoman Of The Year.

Going under the moniker of InStanza, Melanie has spent the last 20 years writing short and sweet speeches for those who might just be a little lost for words otherwise. Covering weddings, birthdays, funerals and all sorts of special occasions, Melanie has brought her natural gift of the gab to many a table, and helped hundreds upon hundreds of people appear incredibly witty, deeply insightful and, just for one day, the coolest person in the room.

And to mix it up, Melanie can also make your speech rhyme – with a talent so very divine – whilst there’s also the option of framed mementos of your milestone moment to take home.

“I get such a kick out of creating something unique that’s full of all the magic, the emotions and the memories that someone wants capture in their speech,” she explains. “And when they’re happy with what you’ve created, it makes them look forward to the very moment that they would otherwise be dreading for days and weeks.

“To be a part of that special day, and to bring a smile and a laugh to everyone there, that’s such a great feeling…”

You can find out more about Instanza right here, follow on Instagram here or Facebook here, and get in touch directly on email here or by phone right here.