The template (30 to 45 seconds)
Copy it as it is and replace each prompt with one or two short sentences.
- ✦HOOK (0 to 3s): one strange, concrete line of about eight words. What would make you stop scrolling?
- ✦SETUP (3 to 8s): who, where, and what's at stake. Only what the viewer needs.
- ✦ESCALATION 1 (8 to 15s): something new happens.
- ✦ESCALATION 2 (15 to 22s): it gets stranger, harder or more personal.
- ✦TWIST (22 to 30s): the surprise. It must be set up by a detail earlier on.
- ✦PAYOFF (30 to 38s): answer the question your hook asked.
- ✦LOOP (38 to 42s): a last line that leads straight back into the hook.
The short version (20 to 30 seconds)
Fewer beats, the same promise:
- ✦HOOK (0 to 3s): the strange detail.
- ✦SETUP (3 to 6s): one line of context.
- ✦ESCALATION (6 to 15s): one development.
- ✦TWIST and PAYOFF (15 to 25s): the surprise that answers the hook.
- ✦LOOP (25 to 30s): the line that hands the replay back to the start.
How to fill it in
Write the twist first. When you know where the story lands, the hook and the clues fall into place. Then write the hook, then everything in between, and cut anything a viewer wouldn't miss.
Read it aloud with a timer. If it runs long, cut lines; don't speed up. Speaking faster to fit makes a Short harder to follow.
Format it for recording
A script you can read cleanly in one take:
- ✦One beat per line, with its start time beside it.
- ✦Short sentences, one idea each.
- ✦Mark pauses where you'd breathe or let a line land.
- ✦Put on-screen text in brackets, so it never gets read out by accident.
Example script: 44-second moral story
- Hook0:00
A wallet fell right in front of him. Nobody was watching.
- Setup0:02
Inside was cash. More than he'd ever held.
- Build0:06
He looked around. No cameras. No people. Just him and the money.
- Build0:11
He found an ID inside. An old man, two streets away.
- Build0:16
He almost walked the other way. Then he didn't.
- Twist0:21
The old man opened the door and just stared at him.
- Twist0:25
Inside the wallet was a folded note. It had the boy's name on it.
- Payoff0:30
It read: 'I dropped this on purpose. I wanted to see who you really are.'
- Loop0:38
Some tests don't come with warnings. And some wallets fall for a reason.
Written by Script AI from the one-line idea above, following exactly this template.
Get hooks for your own idea
Free, no sign-up. The same engine as the app.
Common mistakes
- ✕Starting with backstory or a greeting instead of the hook.
- ✕A twist with no earlier clue. It surprises, but it feels like a cheat.
- ✕A payoff that answers a different question from the one the hook asked.
- ✕Filling every beat even when the story doesn't need it. The template is a guide, not a word count.
- ✕Using the same template with the same rhythm in every video. Vary it so your channel doesn't feel formulaic.
Questions
How many words is a 60-second Shorts script?
+
About 150 words in English at a natural pace of roughly 2.5 words per second. Most story Shorts feel tighter at 30 to 45 seconds, which is 75 to 110 words.
Does this template work for TikTok and Instagram Reels?
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Yes. All three are vertical, swipeable feeds where the first line decides whether people stay, so the same six beats work on each.
Does every Short need a loop ending?
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No, but it helps story Shorts. Shorts replay automatically, and a last line that flows into the first makes the replay feel like part of the story.
Can AI fill in the template for me?
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Yes. Script AI writes all six beats from one idea, timed to your own speaking pace, in 30+ languages. Read it aloud and add your own details before you record.