8 prompts that write your Reels and TikTok scripts

Filming a short video isn't the hard part. The hard part is answering "what do I talk about today?" every single week, and building a flow that holds viewers in the first few seconds. AI can be a great scriptwriting partner here — but if you just ask it to "write me a viral Reel", you'll get bland text that sounds like everyone else.

In this guide we'll first look at the skeleton of a short video, then introduce you to the model once, and then use 8 copy-paste prompts that take you from finding ideas to captions and cross-platform repurposing. The prompts work the same way in ChatGPT and Claude.

What you need

• A ChatGPT or Claude account (you can start on the free plans).

• A clear 3–4 sentence description of what your account is about and who it's for.

• A list of questions from your followers: comments, DMs, poll answers. Copy them as text, not screenshots.

• Your phone for filming and an editing app like CapCut.

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ChatGPT

An all-round chat assistant for writing, ideas, summaries and everyday questions.

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Claude

A strong assistant for long documents, careful writing and coding work.

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The anatomy of a short video

Reels, TikTok or Shorts — most short videos that work are built from the same four parts. Asking the model for each part separately makes a noticeable difference to the output.

1. Hook (first 1–3 seconds): The reason someone stops scrolling. Deliver it both out loud and as on-screen text. Greetings, introducing yourself or "today I'm going to…" waste this moment.

2. Retention (the body): Where you deliver on the hook's promise step by step. A new piece of information, a visual change or on-screen text every 3–5 seconds keeps people watching.

3. Payoff: The answer to the curiosity you created: the result, the before/after, the key tip. Holding the payoff until the end while the middle stays empty wears viewers out.

4. Call to action (CTA): One clear ask: save, follow, comment a word. Three asks in a row means none of them happen.

Introduce yourself to the model once

Re-explaining your account in every request is tiring and inconsistent. Fill in the "creator profile" prompt below once instead. In ChatGPT or Claude you can paste it into a Project's instructions, so every chat in that project starts out knowing you. If you don't use Projects, send it as the first message of a new chat.

You are my short-form video scriptwriting partner. Keep the profile below in mind for this entire conversation and base all your suggestions on it.

Account topic: [e.g. AI tips for small businesses]
Target audience: [who they are, what they do, their biggest pain points]
Platforms: [Instagram Reels / TikTok / YouTube Shorts]
My speaking style: [friendly, short sentences, funny but not over the top, etc.]
Things I avoid: [e.g. clickbait, swearing, exaggerated promises]
My video format: [talking to camera / screen recording / voiceover + footage]
Ideal length: [e.g. 30–45 seconds]
Main action I want from viewers: [save / follow / comment / DM]

Rules: Write in English. Use short, conversational sentences. Don't state things you're unsure of as fact — flag them. If you understand this profile, reply only with a 3-bullet summary of it.

8 prompts: from idea to posting

1. Mining ideas from audience questions

Your best ideas are already sitting in your comments. Paste the questions in bulk and ask the model to turn them into video ideas.

Below are questions and comments from my followers. Review them and:
1) Group similar questions and note how many times each group appears.
2) Suggest one short video idea for each of the 5 most frequent groups.
3) For each idea: a working title, the single clear takeaway the video delivers, and why it suits this audience (one sentence).
Return it as a table. Don't invent questions that aren't in the list.

Questions:
[paste the questions here]

2. 10 hooks in different styles

Don't lock yourself into one hook. Try different styles for the same idea, read them out loud and pick the one that sounds most natural.

Topic: [video idea]
Write 10 different hooks for this video. Each should take no more than 3 seconds to say out loud.
Styles: 2 questions, 2 bold claims, 2 mistakes/warnings, 2 result-first, 1 list promise, 1 comparison.
For each hook, also suggest 3–6 words of on-screen text.
Output: a Style | Spoken hook | On-screen text table. No exaggerated promises or clickbait; don't promise anything the video can't actually deliver.

3. A 30–45 second script with an on-screen text column

Topic: [video idea]
Chosen hook: [hook]
Write a 30–45 second short video script. Return it as a table with these columns:
Seconds | What I say | On-screen text | What's on screen
Structure: hook (0–3 s), retention (3–4 steps, one idea each), payoff, a single CTA.
Rules: Write conversationally; every sentence should be sayable in one breath. On-screen text should summarise, not repeat, the spoken line. Keep the total spoken script under 90–110 words. At the end, score the script out of 10 for hook strength and flow, and name any weak spot in one sentence.

When you review the output, ask yourself: after the first line, do I think "so what?" Does each line say something new? Read it aloud with a timer; if it runs past 45 seconds, ask the model to cut it down.

4. Turning a long video or article into shorts

Below is a [YouTube video transcript / blog post / podcast notes]. Pull out 5 short videos that each work on their own.
For each: a title, a hook, the core idea taken from the text (stay faithful to the source wording), a short 30–45 second flow, and why it makes sense without the original.
Don't add information that isn't in the source. Don't use the same idea twice.

Text:
[paste the text]

5. B-roll and shot list

Create a shot list for the script below. I'm filming alone, on a phone, at home/in the office.
Each row: shot no. | shot (what to film) | angle (close/medium/wide/screen recording) | length | note.
Suggest at least 5 concrete, easy-to-film B-roll shots (e.g. hands typing, the result on screen). Group shots in the same location together so filming goes quickly.

Script:
[paste the script]

6. Caption and hashtags

Write a [platform] caption for this video.
First line: one sentence that sparks curiosity even for someone who hasn't watched.
Then 2–3 short lines summarising the video or adding a bonus tip.
Last line: a single CTA.
Then suggest 3–5 hashtags directly related to the topic, mixing broader ones with niche ones. At most 2 emojis.

Script summary: [summary]

7. The "comment X" CTA

Ending with "comment a keyword and I'll send you the link/list" is a common way to raise engagement and start one-to-one conversations. You can send those messages by hand or use a comment-to-DM automation tool. What matters is that you actually send what you promised.

At the end of my video I'll ask viewers to comment a keyword, and I'll DM everyone who does [resource: e.g. a prompt list / checklist].
1) Suggest 5 keywords that are on-topic, short, easy to type and hard to misspell.
2) Write 3 different CTA lines for the end of the video (2 seconds max each).
3) Write a short DM: a thank-you, the resource, and one next step. Keep it friendly, with no sales pressure.

8. Repurposing across platforms

Adapt the short video script below for Instagram Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts and a LinkedIn/X text post.
For each: what needs to change (hook, length, CTA, tone), a new caption, and one thing to watch out for.
Don't rewrite the video from scratch; only change the parts that need to differ. Return it as a table.

Script:
[paste the script]

Captions in the edit: automatic with CapCut

A lot of short video is watched with the sound off, so captions are close to essential. CapCut's Auto captions feature transcribes your speech and places it on the timeline. On mobile it usually sits under the Text menu, on desktop in the Captions panel; pick the spoken language and generate. Menu names can change between versions.

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CapCut

Fast short-form video editing with auto captions and templates.

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• Always read auto captions from start to finish; names, brand names and non-English words are where mistakes tend to happen.

• Don't push captions too close to the bottom edge; the platform's own buttons and caption text can cover that area.

• Use the script's "on-screen text" column as a bigger headline, separate from the captions.

Common mistakes

• Starting without a profile: When the model doesn't know you, you get scripts that look like everyone else's.

• Accepting the first draft: One or two rounds of "shorter", "more conversational", "make step 3 concrete" noticeably improve quality.

• Promising in the hook but never paying off: Viewers notice, and they'll trust your next video less.

• Reading the script word for word: The script is a skeleton; talk to the camera in your own words.

• Sharing facts without checking: Verify every line with a number, date or tool feature before you post.

• Three CTAs in one video: Save, follow, comment, click the link… pick one.

Next step

These prompts are for individual videos. If you want to publish consistently every week, you need to put them into a system: content pillars, an idea bank, a calendar and batch scripting. I walk through that step by step in a weekly content plan with AI in 30 minutes.