Author Video Sales Letter scripts: 18-minute spoken structure with timestamps, doctor-visit pattern, Method primitives compressed to spoken cadence. Emits script + reader-cue annotations.
Use when the user needs a VSL script from scratch and intends to record themselves or a presenter.
Not for the page that hosts the video (see /convert vsl-page) and not for written long-form (see /convert sales-page).
Install with Codex or Claude Copy this prompt, paste it into Codex, Claude, or another assistant, and let it review the skill page and install it for you.
A direct command skips the review prompt. Inspect the source before running it.
Author Video Sales Letter scripts: 18-minute spoken structure with timestamps, doctor-visit pattern, Method primitives compressed to spoken cadence. Emits script + reader-cue annotations.
Use when the user needs a VSL script from scratch and intends to record themselves or a presenter.
Not for the page that hosts the video (see /convert vsl-page) and not for written long-form (see /convert sales-page).
triggers
["write me a vsl","vsl script","video sales letter","donahoe vsl","18 minute vsl","18-minute vsl","convert vsl","script for my video sales letter"]
negative_triggers
["vsl page","vsl hosting page","audit my vsl","rewrite my vsl","sales page"]
Convert VSL - The 18-Minute Video Sales Letter Script
"A VSL isn't a sales page read aloud. It's a doctor's visit. Big idea. Big claim. Big proof. Big offer. The reader is your patient - you diagnose, prescribe, and remove the friction in their head one objection at a time." - Wayland VSL extension to The Donahoe Method (the Method's spoken-cadence application; the doctor's-visit framing is part of broader direct-response canon, not a Method-spec quote)
This skill emits a complete 18-minute VSL script with timestamps, presenter cues, and the Donahoe Method primitives compressed to the rhythm of speech.
When to Use
Trigger phrases: write me a vsl, vsl script, video sales letter, 18 minute vsl, donahoe vsl, /convert vsl <product>.
Use when the user has a product/offer and needs a full script for a recorded VSL. Output is paste-ready into a teleprompter.
Visual aid notes - slides, B-roll, screen recordings the presenter wants to anchor.
Temperature override.
out_path - defaults via build_report_path("business-conversion", instruction).
Workflow - All Eight Method Phases (Compressed for Speech)
Speech is faster than reading. A reader can re-read; a viewer cannot rewind without friction. Every Method framework applies, but the cadence is compressed.
Phase 0 - Four Questions (call convert-four-questions)
Same diagnostic. Spoken answers must be quotable in one breath.
Phase 1 - Temperature (call convert-temperature)
VSL length scales with temperature:
Ice Cold → 22–28 minutes (more education).
Cool → 18–22 minutes (the canonical length).
Warm → 12–18 minutes.
Hot → 6–12 minutes.
Boiling → 3–6 minutes (almost a reminder).
The 18-minute structure below assumes Cool/Warm, the most common VSL temperature. Adjust segment durations proportionally.
Phase 2 - Four-Layer Open (call convert-open)
The first 60 seconds. All four layers must hit before the viewer's thumb moves.
0:00–0:10 Nerve Strike - first line, on camera, no logo intro, no "hey guys."
0:10–0:25 Side Door - casual entry, sometimes "I'm going to show you something I noticed last week..."
0:25–0:45 Skin in the Game - first-person origin in 1–2 sentences.
0:45–1:00 Fingerprint - opinion or contrarian take that earns the next 17 minutes.
Phase 3 - Three Locks Architecture (call convert-three-locks)
The VSL maps the locks to time:
Want → minutes 1–6.
Trust → minutes 6–12.
Excuse → minutes 12–18.
Phase 4 - Bullets (call convert-bullets)
The "what you'll discover" segment around minute 14. Spoken bullets are shorter than written - 6–10 bullets, mixed types, each a single breath.
Phase 5 - Proof Throughout (call convert-proof)
Proof in a VSL hits harder visually:
Anecdote spoken with eye contact.
Receipt - show the screenshot on screen.
Drive-By - credentials in passing.
Namecheck - show the actual email/DM if possible.
Because - the mechanism, drawn on a whiteboard or slide.
Phase 6 - Cascade Close (call convert-close)
Minutes 14–18 are the close. Same five layers - Stack, Vision, Math, Safety Net, Door. Plus a closing reclose at the very end (the spoken P.S.).
Phase 7 - Greased Chute (call convert-chute)
In speech, chute discipline = pacing:
Open loops every 90 seconds.
Variable rhythm - short sentence, breath, longer sentence, breath, short sentence.
No "um, so, basically" filler - read aloud and cut every place a presenter would naturally pause.
Spoken voice is even less forgiving of marketing-speak. Read every line aloud. If it sounds like marketing, the viewer's gut detects it - and they leave.
The 18-Minute VSL Map (Doctor-Visit Pattern)
Segment
Time
Content
Method primitive
1. Cold open
0:00–1:00
Four-Layer Open compressed
convert-open
2. Stakes
1:00–3:00
What's at stake / cost of inaction
Lock 1 setup
3. The Want
3:00–6:00
Paint the desired state vividly
Lock 1
4. The Big Idea
6:00–9:00
The mechanism / why this works differently
Lock 2 setup
5. The Big Claim
9:00–10:30
Boldest specific promise
Lock 2 climax
6. The Big Proof
10:30–13:00
Conversational Proof rhythm
convert-proof
7. The Big Offer
13:00–14:30
Stack + price framing
Lock 3 setup, Cascade Stack
8. The Bullet Block
14:30–15:30
What you'll get / discover
convert-bullets
9. The Excuse
15:30–16:00
Math justification
Lock 3
10. The Cascade Close
16:00–17:30
Vision → Math → Safety Net → Door
convert-close
11. Reclose
17:30–18:00
The spoken P.S.
Cascade reclose
Segment-by-segment cues for the script
Segment 1 - Cold Open (0:00–1:00).
On camera. No intro card. No music sting. Hit the Nerve. Slide through the Side Door. Drop Skin in the Game. End with the Fingerprint. The audience has decided whether to keep watching by 0:30.
Segment 2 - Stakes (1:00–3:00)."Here's what's actually happening right now if you're [the reader's situation]..." Specific costs. Sensory. The cost of staying stuck - in dollars, in time, in the relationship dynamic at home if they keep grinding.
Segment 3 - The Want (3:00–6:00)."Imagine this instead..." Paint the morning, the inbox, the bank balance, the conversation with a spouse. Specific scenes. The reader can see themselves in the new state.
Segment 4 - The Big Idea (6:00–9:00).
The mechanism. "It works because..." Use a whiteboard, a slide, a screen recording. Make it logical. The Because does heavy work here - the viewer needs the rational story they'll tell themselves later.
Segment 5 - The Big Claim (9:00–10:30).
The single boldest thing you're willing to say on camera. "I can teach you to [specific outcome] in [specific timeframe] without [thing they hate]." Stake it.
Segment 6 - The Big Proof (10:30–13:00).
Three to five proof beats. Anecdote → screenshot. Anecdote → DM. Drive-by credential ("...which I figured out after running campaigns for the last 14 years"). Stack the proof until skepticism breaks.
Segment 7 - The Big Offer (13:00–14:30).
Conversational stack. "So here's what you get..." No formal value table. Components, bonuses, guarantee terms.
Segment 8 - The Bullet Block (14:30–15:30)."Inside, you'll learn..." 6–10 spoken bullets. Mix Keyhole / Flip / Snapshot / Scar. Each is one breath.
Segment 9 - The Excuse (15:30–16:00).
The math. "For less than [comparison they recognize], you get..." Make the rational argument they'll repeat to a spouse.
Segment 10 - The Cascade Close (16:00–17:30).
Vision Close, Math Close, Safety Net (the guarantee - read it word for word, as strong as you can stand). Then the Door - "Click the button below this video. Fill in your details. You're in."
Segment 11 - Reclose (17:30–18:00).
Spoken P.S. "Real quick - one last thing before you go..." Restate the strongest proof OR re-anchor the guarantee. End with a beat of silence.
Output Template
# VSL Script - {{PRODUCT}}**Total runtime:** ~18:00
**Presenter:** {{NAME}}
**One person watching:** {{READER}}
**The Nerve:** {{NERVE}}
**Temperature:** {{LEVEL}}
**Offer:** {{PRICE}} / {{COMPONENTS}} / {{GUARANTEE}}
---
## [0:00–1:00] Cold Open - Four-Layer Open> {{SCRIPTED_LINES}}
**Presenter cue:** {{ON_CAMERA, EYE_CONTACT, NO_INTRO_GRAPHIC}}
**Visual:** {{NONE_OR_LIGHT_ANCHOR}}## [1:00–3:00] Stakes> {{SCRIPTED_LINES}}
**Presenter cue:** {{LOWER_INTENSITY, LEAN_IN}}
**Visual:** {{B_ROLL_OPTION}}
## [3:00–6:00] The Want
> {{SCRIPTED_LINES}}**Presenter cue:** {{WARMER_TONE}}
**Visual:** {{LIFESTYLE_FRAMES}}
## [6:00–9:00] The Big Idea (Mechanism)> {{SCRIPTED_LINES}}
**Visual:** {{WHITEBOARD_OR_SLIDE_REF}}## [9:00–10:30] The Big Claim> {{SCRIPTED_LINES}}
**Presenter cue:** {{HOLD_THE_BEAT}}
## [10:30–13:00] The Big Proof
> {{SCRIPTED_LINES_WITH_PROOF_BEATS}}
**Visual:** {{SCREENSHOT_1}}, {{SCREENSHOT_2}}, {{TESTIMONIAL_CLIP}}## [13:00–14:30] The Big Offer (Stack)> {{SCRIPTED_LINES}}
**Visual:** {{STACK_GRAPHIC_OR_BULLET_OVERLAY}}
## [14:30–15:30] Bullet Block
> {{6–10_SPOKEN_BULLETS_MIXED_TYPES}}
## [15:30–16:00] The Excuse
> {{MATH_PARAGRAPH}}## [16:00–17:30] Cascade Close> {{VISION_CLOSE}}
> {{MATH_CLOSE}}> {{SAFETY_NET_GUARANTEE_VERBATIM}}
> {{DOOR_INSTRUCTION}}**Visual:** {{CTA_BUTTON_OVERLAY}}
## [17:30–18:00] Reclose (spoken P.S.)> {{ONE_FINAL_RECLOSE}}**Presenter cue:** {{BEAT_OF_SILENCE_THEN_FADE}}
---
## Method coverage report
Method coverage report:
Open: full - all 4 layers compressed to 0:00–1:00 (Nerve Strike → Side Door → Skin → spoken Fingerprint)
Three Locks: full - Want (3:00–6:00), Trust (10:30–13:00 + Big Idea), Excuse (15:30–16:00)
Proof: full - claim → evidence → reason → move-on rhythm in Big Proof segment + Drive-By in Big Idea
Bullets: full - mixed types (K / F / Sn / Sc), specificity, one-breath each
Cascade Close: full - Stack / Vision / Math / Safety Net / Door + spoken P.S. in spec order
Greased Chute: full - open loops every ~90s, variable rhythm, no filler; spoken cadence engineered
Voice Rules: full - first person, contractions, no marketing-speak; spoken-first phrasing
Temperature: {{COOL / WARM / HOT}}
Required next step: Run /convert bullshit-filter on this script before recording - VSL scripts that read stiff in print read catastrophically stiff aloud.
The Filter is a SEPARATE pass - this skill cannot grade its own output.
## Notes / Cross-Skill Composition
- This skill produces the **script only**. Pair with `/convert vsl-page` for the hosting page (with reveal mechanics, buy-button timing, and CTA stack below the video).
- For long-form launch sequences where the VSL is one of several assets, route through `/funnel build-campaign` and call this skill as a sub-step.
- Read every line aloud at speaking pace. Time it. If a segment runs long, cut - do not let segments bleed.
- The biggest VSL killer is fake urgency. If the "Why Now" answer is manufactured, viewers detect it and the close collapses. Only use real reasons.
- For Boiling traffic, drop segments 2 and 3 (stakes + Want - they already feel both). Keep open, mechanism, proof, offer, close.
## Lineage
- 18-minute infomercial structure - informed by classic long-form direct-response TV (canonical big-idea/big-claim/big-proof/big-offer arc).
- Doctor-visit framing - Halbert canon (problem → diagnosis → prescription → instruction).
- Slippery-slide spoken pacing - Sugarman (The AdWeek Copywriting Handbook, 1998).
- The Method itself - Wayland-owned operating system.
