youtube-visual-scriptwriter

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: