How to Make TikTok, Reels and YouTube Shorts With AI (Scripts and Prompts)

Script first, visuals second

A common pattern: someone opens an AI video generator, types the first idea that comes to mind and gets a pretty clip that says nothing. Short-form video works better when you know what you want to say before you generate a single frame.

• One idea: the single takeaway for the viewer. If you have two, make two videos.
• A hook: the opening line or image. It decides whether someone keeps watching.
• A timed script: what is seen and what is said in each scene.
• Visuals: filmed by you, taken from your own footage or generated with an AI tool.
• Voice, music and captions: added last, once the script is locked.
• A final review: watch it end to end, check facts and confirm it follows the platform's rules.

What a short-form script needs

There is no room for a slow intro in a TikTok, a Reel or a Short. A working script usually has an immediate hook, one scene per point, on-screen text that supports the voiceover and a close that tells viewers what to do next. AI assistants are good at shaping this when you give them the context.

Act as a short-form video scriptwriter.
Write a script for a [30]-second vertical video about [topic].
Audience: [who will watch it and what they already know].
Goal: by the end, the viewer understands [one specific idea].
Format: a table with columns for time, what we see, what we say and on-screen text.
Include a hook in the first 3 seconds and an ending that [asks a question / invites viewers to save the video].
Limits: short sentences that are easy to say out loud, no jargon, and no invented facts. If you need information I haven't given you, ask me before writing.

Read the script aloud with a timer. If it doesn't fit the length you asked for, cut it. Trimming a sentence is easier than speeding up your voice.

Hooks: how the video opens

The hook can be a question, a surprising statement, a problem the viewer recognises or a result shown before it is explained. What matters is that the rest of the video delivers on it. A hook that misleads may get a click, but it leaves viewers feeling tricked.

Write 10 different hooks for a short video about [topic], aimed at [audience].
Mix these styles: a question, a common mistake, a before-and-after, a checkable fact and a personal confession.
Each hook must be under 12 words and easy to say in under 3 seconds.
Don't exaggerate or promise results the video can't deliver. Star the 3 that best fit a [friendly / professional / funny] tone.

Plan a series instead of one-offs

Posting one-off videos means coming up with a new idea every time. A series on one topic is planned in a single sitting: you choose the theme, the AI proposes the episodes and you decide which ones to film. It also gives your channel a recognisable shape.

Plan a series of 7 short videos (30 to 45 seconds each) about [topic] for [platform].
Audience: [description].
For each video give me: a working title, the one idea it explains, the hook, a summary of the scenes and the ending.
Order them so each video makes sense on its own but the series has a thread.
Avoid repeating the same hook and don't include facts I can't verify; flag anything I need to check.

Visuals, voice and captions

Some tools generate clips from text, such as Veo, Kling, Seedance or Runway, and others add voiceover, captions or music. Each has its own features, limits, pricing and terms of use, and these change often, so check the current details of whichever you pick. What always helps is describing each scene clearly.

Vertical clip (9:16), [5] seconds. Shot: [medium / close-up / overhead]. Scene: [what happens, and to whom or what]. Setting: [light, place, time of day]. Camera: [static / slow push-in]. Style: [natural, no heavy filters]. No text or logos inside the image.

• Label AI-generated or AI-altered content where the platform or the law requires it. Check the current rules of TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, and the official sources for your country.
• Don't imitate real people's faces or voices without their permission.
• Use music, images and brands you have clear rights to. A tool generating something doesn't automatically mean you can use it anywhere; read its terms.
• If the video states facts, check them against sources you've looked at yourself. AI can be wrong while sounding certain.

Common mistakes

• Starting with the tool instead of the idea: without a script the video has no thread.
• Packing too much into a few seconds: one idea per video.
• A hook that promises something the video doesn't deliver.
• Accepting the first script without reading it aloud or trimming it.
• Posting without checking facts, music rights or platform rules.
• Expecting a specific number of views or followers: no one can guarantee that, not the AI and not a template.

Templates that write the prompts for you

Writing these prompts from scratch each time takes a while. In PromptNow, the short-form video script template asks for your topic, audience, length and tone in a form and generates a ready-to-paste prompt for your AI assistant.

If you want to start with the opening, the hooks template builds the prompt for a batch of openers. The shorts-by-topic template helps you plan several videos at once. You then decide what to film, what to generate and what to throw away.