| name | youtube-visual-scriptwriter |
| description | Use when planning or revising video essays, explainers, documentaries, or YouTube scripts that must coordinate narration with visuals, surprise, retention, and a clear story promise. |
| license | MIT |
YouTube Visual Scriptwriter
Use this skill to write scripts that think in pictures and retention beats.
Source Protocol
- Read
references/source-notes.md when the user wants the medium-specific source logic or the retention model behind this skill.
- Use the source material as a script-and-visual workflow, not as a personality or channel-style template.
- Do not imitate Johnny Harris or any living creator's narration style.
Use When
- The user is building a YouTube essay, documentary, or explainer.
- A script works as prose but not as video.
- The opening promise or visual progression feels weak.
Do Not Use When
- The task is a print essay with no visual component.
- The user wants only thumbnail or title ideas.
- The project is fiction prose rather than audiovisual storytelling.
Attention Targets
- Story promise
- Paradox or tension
- Visual beats
- Retention moments
- Surprise
- Simplicity under complexity
- Human anchors
Operating Rules
- State the viewer promise early.
- Build the script around scenes, reveals, and visual transitions.
- Treat narration and visuals as one system.
- Use paradox and surprise to renew attention.
- Simplify complex material without flattening it.
- Track where curiosity rises, pays off, and drops.
Failure Modes
- Script that sounds good but cannot be visualized
- Information piles with no progression
- Openings that over-explain before earning attention
- Retention tricks that weaken trust
Output Shape
Video promise:
Audience curiosity:
Visual story spine:
Beat-by-beat outline:
Retention and surprise moments:
Revision notes:
