How to write a script for a YouTube video 

Think of a YouTube video you watched recently that you really enjoyed. It’s certain that the content creator poured time and love into carefully planning that video. That’s the magic of a YouTube video script, it makes content feel both spontaneous with a clear direction.

Successful YouTubers are storytellers, first and foremost, no matter their content or style. That’s why many lucrative YouTube channels consistently follow the golden rules for video scripting once they have a video idea.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to plan engaging scripts for YouTube videos and YouTube Shorts. Learn the tricks of the trade on how to write a YouTube script including secret recipes like hook writing and creating strategic call to actions. Then you can turn your words on the page into viral videos with a YouTube video editor like Clipchamp.

Planning a YouTube video script

Set a goal

First step for your YouTube script outline is to define the desired outcome for your YouTube channel and its videos.

• Inform: Share facts and relay information.

• Educate: Provide instruction or perform analysis.

• Entertain: Offer amusement and joy.

• Hybrid: A mix of two or all the above.

Choose a niche

Select a specific topic and area of interest that your channel will focus on. A strong niche is often a sub-genre or specialist area within an existing topic of genre. The more unique your topic is, the more defined your audience will be.

Target an audience

Identify who is interested in your niche and what their demographic information is. The age and location of your viewers will influence how you structure your video content and how you write your script. This will include language choice and tone and your call to action (CTA) – more on that later.

Select a YouTube video format

How long will your video be?

• Shorts: Between 15 seconds and 3 minutes

• YouTube feed video: 5 minutes and above

The length of your video will depend on your goal, niche, and target audience. It might help to brainstorm your video a little first for an estimation on how long it will be.

Pick a video editing style

The duration and format of your YouTube video will influence your editing style.

• Shortform: Targeting short attention spans means you need to pack in more scene changes with fast video editing like rapid transitions.

• Longform: Longer videos can mean you have the rhythm to pace your visuals and dialogue slowly, requiring less scene changes and transitions.

Plan your script accordingly based on your video’s estimated runtime.

Appear on camera or record a voiceover

Will your video feature on-air talent or will it just be a voiceover? This depends on your goal and style. If you or a performer will address the camera, the script style will need to be conversational. Voiceover scripts like those used in faceless AI YouTube channels can be more structured as they are closely tied to the supporting visuals.

Writing a YouTube Shorts script

YouTube Shorts are designed to be bite-sized snippets that inform, educate, or entertain in a small amount of time.

The maximum length of a YouTube Short is 3 minutes, but they can be much briefer from under a minute to a few seconds. Due to their digestible nature, content creators write YouTube Shorts scripts with brevity in mind.

YouTube Shorts videos often start with something exciting or in the middle of action to capture the viewer's attention. They often feature subtitles and moving graphics to convey key information and to be consumable with the sound off. Here’s how to create great scripts for Shorts in three easy steps:

Step 1. Write a hook

A hook is an opening that immediately attracts your viewer’s attention. Strong hooks grip the audience in a few seconds and keep them interested throughout the entire video. Here are some popular hook templates frequently used in YouTube Shorts:

• Address a pain point: Begin the video with a solution to a common problem. Leading with the problem solved will draw your viewer in and make them want to see how it’s solved.

• Five hidden secrets about [X]: Create a sense of insider knowledge. This is a strong hook for history and educational videos because it promises new learnings and creates a sense of intrigue.

Looking for more ideas? Check out 10 hooks to explode your video views.

Step 2. Write the main content

You can either create fresh content specifically for YouTube Shorts or use a YouTube video trimmer to cut and resize YouTube videos to create highlights from your main channel. Your main content will depend on your video style and goal. Here are some writing tips for the main content in popular Shorts formats:

• Listicle: Script your visuals for each item in the list. Ideally, you’ll want a scene change for each sentence or new idea.

• Deep dive trailer: Trailers need to convey the story of the longer video while not giving away all the content. Include short snippets of highlights that are enough to capture attention without spoiling the longer video.

• How-to: Lead with visuals of the finished tutorial to draw viewers in, then create clear title cards for each step without obscuring the visuals.

Step 3. Write the call to action

Many content creators use the sub-platform of YouTube Shorts to drive traffic to their main channel. In fact, some channels exclusively use their Shorts content for lead generation and don’t send their Shorts to their existing subscribers.

A strong call to action (CTA) is how you capture leads and create repeat viewers and subscribers to your channel. The call to action is often “link to full video” in comments or “head to the main channel for full video” or even “find related videos on my channel.”

Time-sensitive CTAs like promotional codes or free gifts with a contest deadline help longer watch times and encourage viewers to watch the whole Short. In addition to your strategic CTA, you should also use like and subscribe buttons to encourage engagement and channel growth.

Writing a YouTube video script

Writing a YouTube feed video script requires a different approach for shortform and longform videos on the primary YouTube platform. The widescreen format and flexible time construct means you have more room to plan.

Here’s how to approach writing different elements of a long YouTube video:

Step 1. Captivate with a hook

You have more time to hook your readers in with long-form videos. But you still want to capture each viewer’s full attention in the first few seconds of the video. The subtle difference with a longform hook is you can start with a small taster and slowly build intrigue to completely engage viewers. Some hook writing styles for long YouTube videos are: 

• Cold open: This cinematic narrative technique begins your video in the middle of an action or idea that immediately involves your viewer’s imagination. It creates suspense and intrigue because it plays on the human brain’s natural craving for order and understanding. Media analysis channel Now You See It provides an excellent examination and history of the technique.

• Facts and stats: Numbers and data convey information with a sense of palpable objectivity. Beginning your video with a lesser-known fact that validates the purpose of your video may offer the viewer the promise that you have the answer they’re seeking. It also lends you credibility and expertise. Health YouTuber Bryan Johnson often opens his videos with creative uses of facts and statistics.

• Surprise and twist: Many YouTubers will bait and switch their viewers by promising one piece of content, then disrupting it with a new form of content. Fitness YouTuber ATHLEAN-X often performs humorous click-bait and switches with his video openings, making him look like he agrees with a common trend when his perspective is actually more nuanced.

Step 2. Establish branding

YouTube is a vast ocean of content so it’s good practice to introduce yourself and your YouTube channel and establish your brand identity in every video. This helps you connect with new viewers and remind subscribers what you’re all about. Complementing your channel intro script with a logo animation or like and subscribe buttons can also remind them to subscribe for future content.

Channel branding is how you carve out your authority in your niche. You can generate more likes and subscribes by establishing your channel’s credibility as a constant source of content. Create engaging and bite-sized intros using these Clipchamp intro templates.

Step 3. Tease the video topic

After you’ve established your credibility and brand identity, you want to preview the current video’s content. This can be as simple as stating “In today’s video…” then providing a one sentence summary. Or you can tease out a bit more information with some dot points.

Keep it short and snappy while instilling trust in your viewer that your video will provide them with the content they’re seeking. You can combine the channel intro and the topic intro into the same segment and it doesn’t need to be long. Strong introductions dedicate a sentence each to the channel and then the current topic. You can then hone this consistent formula to continue increasing your watch time.

Step 4. Outline your main content

Writing a YouTube script doesn’t mean word for word dictation. A guideline will create structure and leave room for spontaneity, so your content feels genuine and conversational. Segment the key topics and information with an outline or mind map. This will keep your main content organized. Here are some script writing tips based on your content format:

• Storytelling: The art of storytelling on YouTube matches gripping narration with evocative visuals. When planning a narrative, identify the main character and setting then break the story up into a clear beginning, middle, and end. You can swap the order and tell the story however you choose once you have that anchoring framework. Sports channel Secret Base is an excellent YouTube script example for storytelling. They focus on individual moments that last seconds. They then unpack these highlights by providing years of background in digestible shortform and longform videos.

• Slideshows: Slideshow presentations suit videos where the content creator wants to focus on information and doesn’t want to overload viewers with visuals. Write your script alongside your visuals, noting the duration and whether you need video or still footage. Educational YouTuber CGP Grey is renowned for slideshow explainer videos where he mixes animation, stock footage, and imagery as the backdrop for his masterful narration.

• Listicles: Listicles are a popular format all over the internet for good reason. They chunk up ideas and themes into separate bite-sized ideas. To write a listicle script, begin with a numerical list then add your key pieces of info to touch on. Lifestyle YouTuber Thomas Frank approaches the listicle with a master shot of him addressing the camera then provides the visuals by performing small sketches as examples.

• Documentaries: Documentary script writing should often happen alongside your research phase. Master the habit of notetaking while learning so the most fascinating parts make their way into your video. Historical channel Defunctland is all about documentaries on extinct theme parks. The script is the basis of the video, and the visuals complement the historical context of the topics covered.

• Tutorial videos: How to and instructional video script writing is similar to listicles. They’re all about sequential information. When scripting, the steps will inform the video structure. Productivity YouTuber Ali Abdaal is a master of tutorials where the visuals are dynamic. He incorporates skits, infographics, and animations while speaking to the camera.

Step 5. Summarize and call to action

There’s a reason your high school English teacher made you perfect writing a summary as the final paragraph of your essays. Human brains need to be reminded of the content they’ve just consumed. Finish off your video with a succinct few sentences packaging up the key learnings.

Once you’ve summarized your video, direct your viewer to taking action. YouTubers usually link to another video on a similar topic or even point viewers in the direction of other social media accounts or newsletters to join for more tips.

Use your CTA to build a community and a fanbase. Not only do you want to encourage liking the video and subscribing but tailor the viewing experience to be more personal. Make your viewer feel like they just joined a club. This can be as short and sweet as the intro. Clipchamp has a range of YouTube end screen templates that pair well with outro scripts.

Explore more YouTube outro templates.

Generate AI YouTube scripts

Not a natural with the whole coming up with words thing? Fast track your writing by using Copilot for AI script generation.

Prompt Copilot to generate an outline or a complete draft of a YouTube script. You can also instruct AI tools to write a script in the same tone of voice as famous YouTubers like Liam Thompson, MKBHD, or Kevin Stratvert.

Here’s our 5 AI prompts to script videos faster.

Who doesn’t love it when a plan comes together? But if you’re still new to script writing, check out our tips and templates on general video script writing. Then hone the craft of writing YouTube descriptions for another strategy to build views and subscribers.

Start creating Shorts and YouTube videos with Clipchamp or download the Clipchamp Windows app.