How to write a script for a 60-second video

By the Telepromptia team · Updated October 31, 2026 · 5 min read

Sixty seconds is about 120 to 160 words, which is less than most people think. A good script at that length is not a squeezed-down long one. It has one idea, a fast opening and nothing that does not earn its place. This guide gives you a word budget, a five-beat structure, a complete example and a method for cutting a draft that runs long.

Key takeaways

• Aim for roughly 120 to 150 words. Longer drafts almost always run over.
• Build the script around one idea that you can state in a single sentence.
• Spend about a tenth of the time on the hook and write it after you know the point.
• Use short sentences and spoken words, and read the draft aloud before you record.
• When the script runs long, cut a whole beat instead of reading faster.

Start with one sentence

Before writing anything else, finish this sentence: "After watching, you will know how to ___." If the blank needs the word "and", you have two videos. Pick one. Everything in the script should help that sentence come true, and anything that does not can go.

Then check who the sentence is for. Writing to one specific person, such as a friend who is about to make this mistake, gives the script a voice.

Set a word budget

At a conversational 140 words per minute, 60 seconds holds about 140 words. Spending them on purpose keeps the video tight. Our speed and font size guide has a table for other paces. A workable split:

These numbers are a guide, not a rule. If the hook takes 7 seconds and lands, keep it.

The five beats

1. Hook

Open with the result, the problem or a question. Avoid greetings and channel introductions; they use the most valuable seconds. Write three versions and keep the one you would stop scrolling for. Draft the hook last, because only then do you know what you promised.

2. Problem

Say in two sentences why the usual way fails. This gives the viewer a reason to care about your points.

3. Points

Three points are enough. Make each one a single action or idea, in the order the viewer will use it. If you have a fourth, it is probably the next video.

4. Payoff

Tell them what changes if they follow your steps. State it plainly and without hype.

5. Ask

One small request: save this, try it today, or follow for more. Never two.

A complete example

This script is about 115 words, which takes somewhere between 50 and 60 seconds at an unhurried pace, leaving a little room for pauses.

Your videos sound like you recorded them in a bathroom. Here is the fix, in one minute. Echo comes from hard, bare surfaces that bounce your voice back into the microphone. The more empty wall and glass around you, the worse it gets. Fix one: move closer to the phone. A shorter distance makes your voice louder than the echo. Fix two: add something soft. Hang a blanket behind the phone, close the curtains or sit next to a full bookshelf. Fix three: record ten seconds, then listen back with headphones before you commit to the whole video. Try them in that order. Often the first two are enough. Follow for more simple audio fixes.

Notice what is missing: no introduction, no promise to "dive in", no recap. Every sentence either states the problem or gives a step.

Three hook patterns that work

• The result. "Fix your room echo in one minute." Say what the viewer gets.
• The mistake. "Most people record in the worst corner of the room." Name something they may be doing right now.
• The question. "Why does your voice sound hollow on video?" Use it only if the video answers it.

Avoid a hook that promises more than the video delivers. It may win a few seconds of attention, but it costs trust.

Write it to be spoken

Write one sentence per line, so you can see the rhythm. If a line runs past about 15 words, split it. Use contractions, and write numbers the way you say them. Read the draft aloud in the room where you will record, standing up, and mark the two places where you want to slow down. Anything you stumble on twice should be rewritten, not practised.

Common mistakes

• Opening with a greeting or an introduction.
• Packing three ideas into one video.
• Ending with a long summary of what you just said.
• Copying text from an article, which is written for the eye.
• Reading faster to make an overlong script fit.

Cut a draft that runs long

1. Read it aloud with a timer. Do not guess.
2. Cut the first sentence that is not the hook. Most drafts begin too early.
3. Remove softeners such as "really", "basically" and "just".
4. Merge two weak points into one strong one.
5. Delete a whole beat if you still run over, usually the second half of the problem.

If the draft runs short, do not pad it. A 50-second video that ends cleanly beats a 60-second one with filler.

Record it

Short scripts reward a quick setup: phone upright at eye level, light on your face, and the first sentence known by heart so you can say it straight to the lens. Our guide to teleprompters for TikTok and Reels covers vertical framing and captions. For a ready-made skeleton, the script templates guide has fill-in structures.

Where Telepromptia fits

Telepromptia shows the reading time of your script as you write, and a target length of 30, 60 or 90 seconds sets the scroll speed to fit. The free plan stores three scripts and records up to three minutes per session, with no watermark. See the pricing page for what Pro adds.