01 / Start from notes
Points first, sentences second
You do not need a finished essay. Start with the points you want to hit: what it is, why it matters, what to do next. Then turn each point into a sentence you would say across a table.
InOne can help turn notes into a script, and it can tidy a draft. Keep your own tone. If a line sounds like a brochure, rewrite it until it sounds like you.
02 / Short lines
One idea, then a breath
One idea per line. Prefer words you use when you talk. Leave the line breaks in. They are your breaths.
- Lead with the thing, not a warm-up
- Cut a clause if you would not say it out loud
- If you cannot say it in one breath, it is not a line yet
03 / Say it once
Before you hit record
Stand up and say it. Mark the words you trip on and replace them. A teleprompter will not save a sentence you cannot pronounce.
If you know the opening by heart, still put it on the page. The cue is there so you do not have to choose between memory and eye contact.
04 / Leave room for the cut
The stumble is not the video
You will say “um”. You will pause. You might want the second half of take two and the ending from take three. That is normal. Say the line, then the next line, and let the edit remove the stumble. Do not restart the whole video because one word came out wrong.
When the beats are clean, stitch them in order and export one file. The script did its job if the finished video sounds like a person, not a readout.
Next: How to write a short video script, or Read to camera without looking away.