Guide
Four short-form script templates, with the timings
Copy these into whatever you already write in. Nothing to download and nothing to sign up for.
A template is a set of slots with timings attached. The timings are the useful part — most scripts fail because a good idea arrives too late, not because the writing was poor.
All four below are sized for about 30 seconds, which is roughly 75 to 90 spoken words. Scale the timings up proportionally for 60.
1. The correction
The most reliable shape in most advice niches. You were wrong, you found out, here is the right answer.
0:00–0:03 — The admission. What you did, and for how long. Give a real duration.
0:03–0:07 — Rule out the obvious. 'And it is not [the thing everyone says].'
0:07–0:12 — Why you believed it. One sentence. This is what makes it credible.
0:12–0:22 — The actual answer, with one specific detail nobody else includes.
0:22–0:30 — What changed as a result. Close the loop you opened in line one.
2. The comparison
Two options, your verdict. The verdict is the easy part — the reason behind it is the video.
0:00–0:03 — Name both, and say that one of them is clearly better.
0:03–0:06 — Say which, immediately. Do not make them wait for the verdict.
0:06–0:14 — The reason, which is where the value actually is.
0:14–0:24 — The case for the loser. One honest point — this buys trust.
0:24–0:30 — Who should pick which. A specific person, not 'it depends'.
3. The process
How you actually do something. The real way, including the shortcut you would not put in a tutorial.
0:00–0:03 — The outcome first. Show or state what it produces.
0:03–0:05 — How long it takes. A real number.
0:05–0:20 — Three steps, roughly five seconds each. Three, not five.
0:20–0:26 — The step everyone skips, and what happens without it.
0:26–0:30 — The thing to do first, today.
4. The answer
A real question you have actually been asked. Real questions outperform invented ones and viewers can tell the difference.
0:00–0:04 — The question, quoted. Say that you get it often.
0:04–0:08 — The short answer, straight away.
0:08–0:18 — Why, with one example from your own work.
0:18–0:26 — The exception. When the short answer is wrong.
0:26–0:30 — What to do if you are the exception.
How to use these without sounding templated
- Write the beat, not the word count. If a beat needs four seconds rather than five, take it from the next one.
- Keep the timings, change everything else. The timings are what stops the payoff arriving too late.
- Never fill a slot with nothing. An empty beat stretched to fit is where people leave.
- Write the close first, sometimes. If you know what you are landing on, the opening writes itself more easily.
Building your own
These four came from watching videos that held attention and writing down four numbers: where the opening stopped, when the complication landed, when it turned, what the close asked for. That method is in viral hooks, and it produces templates fitted to your niche rather than to a general audience.
Write Shorts does the same thing from a pasted link and writes the script into the shape it finds. It costs money. The templates above are free and will not expire.
Questions people ask
- How many words is a 30-second script?
- Around 75 to 90 spoken. Read it out loud and time it — scripts always read faster on the page than they speak.
- Can I use these for Reels and Shorts?
- Yes. The opening and the ending want adjusting per platform — the differences are in [content repurposing](/blog/content-repurposing).
- Is there a downloadable version?
- No. They are written out in full above so you can copy them into whatever you already use.
Your turn, with a video that already worked
Paste a TikTok, Reel or Short from your own niche. You get the same shape back, written about your subject, in your words.
Paid plans only — there is no free tier. $24.99 a month, or $149 a year.