Hook before body—always
Draft three hooks before any body copy. Hooks are not opening sentences; they are pattern interrupts: a bold claim, a wrong assumption corrected, a countdown, or a visual stunt described for the editor. Pick the hook that matches your first frame.
Hook A: contrarian (“Stop doing X if you want Y”).
Hook B: curiosity gap (“The one setting everyone misses”).
Hook C: proof-first (“Here is what 100 videos showed”).
Script for sound and subtitles
Write short lines—one idea per caption block. Avoid semicolons and nested clauses. Say numbers and names in a way that reads well as text on screen. If a line is hard to speak in one breath, split it.
Duration targeting
Pick a target band (for example 24–34 seconds) based on platform norms for your niche.
Read aloud with a timer; cut adjectives before facts.
Leave 0.5–1.0 seconds for the last frame CTA or loop.
Variants without spam
Generate two or three hook variants from the same beat sheet—test angles, not duplicates. Change the first two seconds materially; platforms penalize near-identical reuploads.
QA before record
Fact-check claims that could be wrong in six months—shorts spread fast.
Check music and brand mentions against your risk tolerance.
Confirm on-screen text matches safe reading speed.
If retention drops at the midpoint, the issue is usually pacing or a second idea sneaking in—fix structure before lighting.