Your Scriptwriting Partner

An engaging YouTube video doesn't have a single "payoff" at the end.

It has payoffs every 90-120 seconds:

But many YouTubers struggle to apply this to their niche.

So today, I'll show you exactly what "setup + tension + payoff" looks like across 4 totally different niches (so you can steal it).

But first...

NEW AI TOOL IN PROGRESS

🤖 “Predict” retention BEFORE you upload?

I appreciate you joining the AI Scriptwriting GPT Waitlist!

Excited to share a preview of my new favourite tool...

Introducing: The “Retention Predictor”

• Analyses your entire script.
• Scores your retention /10
• Tells you where viewers are likely to stop watching (so you can fix it before you film).

I'll be sharing an early demo of this in our podcast next week 👇

This is still being refined, but my course and community students will be the first to access it the moment it's ready for testing

If you'd like to join them and get EARLY access to these 12 GPTs...

• I share them with my students for testing the moment each is ready. 7/12 are already finished!
• Course/community students who join BEFORE the official AI launch date retain access afterwards... so you essentially get the GPTs for free if you join the course now. Just sayin' 👀

Join YTSP (access each GPT the moment they're ready)

In the meantime, I'll keep you updated about the GPTs I'm working on next!

✍️ Setup + Tension + Payoff (4 actual examples)

#1 - Listicle:

e.g. "17 cheap purchases that save me time"

Setup: “Next, I wanna talk about one of the biggest productivity-killers that everyone suffers from, but nobody talks about."​

Tension: Now, whether we’ve got old piles of paper lying around on our desks or even just a banana skin that we’re too lazy to go to the kitchen and throw away, it’s super easy to end up with a messy desk when we’re busy. The huge problem this causes for our productivity is [insert productivity fact about having a messy workspace].

Payoff: That’s why item number three is having a rubbish bin in every room. It’ll save you time, make each room tidier, and stop your productivity from halving.”

Framework:

• Setup: “Next, let's talk about [{thing that matters} in relation to {overall video goal}]."
• Tension: [Provide context on why it matters, and how getting it wrong would impact the viewer.]
• Payoff: "That’s why item number three is [reveal item, briefly conclude how this solves {thing that matters}]."

#2 - Tutorial

e.g. How to build a website using Figma

Setup: "Step 1 is preparing your project area. This is gonna allow us to keep track of the many different assets we're about to create.

Tension: In a tutorial, "tension" is literally just showing the audience the step-by-step process.

Payoff: "So, now we have our project area set up, that's gonna stop us getting overwhelmed as we build our website."

Framework:

• Setup: "Step 1 is [X]. This is gonna allow us to [do thing audience wants / thing that relates to goal of tutorial]."
• Tension: [Show the step-by-step process.]
• Payoff: "So, now we've [achieved X], that's gonna [help achieve thing audience wants / avoid negative consequences]."

#3 - Vlog

e.g. We visited Kyoto's most expensive restaurant

Setup: "As we touched down in Kyoto, I could never have guessed where I'd be sitting just 2 hours later."

Tension: In a vlog, use plenty of voiceover and carefully selected footage from the trip to reveal events gradually. In this example, we want to keep the viewer guessing about where the YouTuber will be in 2 hours.

Payoff: "It turned out... my partner had arranged a private chef for our first night in the city." [Then, the next setup might be about the incredible dessert they had at the end of the night.]

Framework:

• Setup: [Hint at X exciting/interesting thing in the location you're arriving at.]
• Tension: [Show events building up to X using plenty of voiceover and carefully selected footage.]
• Payoff: [Reveal X.]

#4 - Video Essay

e.g. How much protein do you ACTUALLY need to build muscle?

Setup: "But a new paper from the university of Kent might have revealed something that changes the debate completely."​Tension: [Explore this paper and why it adds credence to the opinion that you need less protein.]​Payoff: "So it's definitely not as straightforward as Arnie would lead us to believe."

Framework:

• Setup: "But [something intriguing] has [changed/happened] which could [impact the topic in an unexpected way]."
• Tension: [Explore the topic to drive tension.]
• Payoff: "So it turns out that [topic] [is/isn't affected by] [something intriguing] in [specific way].
  ​

NEW INSTAGRAM POST

Bullet points? Or word for word...? 😬

This is still the most common question I get after almost 4 years as a YouTube scriptwriter.

But what if... you don’t have to decide between the two?

Check out this recent video I made to learn more:

‍Watch Now

‍That's all for this week.

Any questions? You can to reply to this email and I'll get back to you.

Speak soon,
George 👋

This week, I have to get something off my chest.

I haven't spoken publicly about this before, but it's something that's been negatively impacting my business for 18 months (and has cost me thousands of £££).

So let's talk about it...

Watch the Video

Back to the usual content next week!

NEW AI TOOL JUST DROPPED

🤖 AI now writes bullet-point scripts.

I appreciate you joining the AI Scriptwriting GPT Waitlist!

Excited to share a preview of the toughest one I've built yet...

Introducing: The “Level 1 Structure Coach”

• Creates a bullet point script from just brainstorm notes, a video title and audience avatar info.
• Writes payoffs word-for-word, and adds rough bullet points for setup and tension. It attempts to make the ideas build naturally upon each other.
• It also assesses your audience avatar and cuts information it thinks they won’t care about (plus provides the rationale for each idea it cuts.)

This is still being refined, but my course and community students already have access to help me test it.

If you'd like to join them and get EARLY access to these 12 GPTs...

• I share them with my students for testing the moment each is ready. 7/12 are already finished!
• Course/community students who join BEFORE the official AI launch date retain access afterwards... so you essentially get the GPTs for free if you join the course now. Just sayin' 👀

Join YTSP (access each GPT the moment it's ready)

In the meantime, I'll keep you updated about the GPTs I'm working on next!

NEW INSTAGRAM POST

This hook mistake is wrecking your retention 📉

Uploaded this week - use THIS RULE when writing your next hook.

Check it Out!

There's something super sneaky you should probably cut out of your next hook.

This won't take long to explain, and you might not be doing it!

But it's easy to miss, so worth a check...

✂️ Cut this from your hook...

At the end of most educational hooks, you have a value proposition.

That's the part where you explain exactly what your video covers.

Something like:

• "So in this video we're going to rank the top 10 value-for-money Pokémon cards, and exactly where to buy them."

This is a great value proposition.

On the other hand, here's a value proposition that's too long:

• ❌ “In this video I'll show you how you can achieve [X]. To do that, I'm going to tell you a story— a story that will reveal the three main mistakes you're probably making, how to avoid making those mistakes, and the simple strategy I used to [overcome them].”

After reviewing a couple of videos I worked on, plus some of my students' graphs, I saw that value proposition sentences like this negatively impacted retention.

Let's look at the problems:

1. Repetition - the first and last highlighted sentences achieve the same thing. We explain, twice, that "I'm going to show you how to achieve X". Cut one.
2. The "How" - we explain the meta of how the information will be delivered ("I'm going to tell you a story"), rather than simply... telling the story.

This second point is the most important, and the sneaky thing that can hide in your hook.

So, here's that same value prop, re-written with repetition removed, and the "How" reframed:

• ✅ “In this video, I'll reveal the three main mistakes you're probably making, and the simple strategy I used to [overcome them]. To explain the first mistake, I have to tell you about a make-or-break moment in my career, when I almost [caused disaster]…”

Rather than explaining that we're going to tell a story soon, we deliver the value prop and then just tell the story.

I realise... this can get confusing, because we do want to make it crystal clear how our video is going to be structured so the audience feels oriented.

So, here's the simplest way to think about it:

DO outline your video's structure:

• ✅ "...using my 3-step system..."
• ✅ "...with these 5 tips..."
• ✅ "...by ranking the top 10..."

DON'T explain the "how":

• ❌ "...I'm going to tell you a story..." (just start telling the story!)
• ❌ "...I'm going to give you some background, and then we'll get into it..." (just give the background... you don't have to justify yourself!)
• ❌ "...we're gonna break this down over the course of this video..." (just break it down then, no need to warn us first!)

So, on your next hook... watch out for these!

NEW INSTAGRAM REEL

📉 Don’t make this retention mistake!

In my ongoing crusade against Ali Abdaal's bin*, I made a new IG Reel I think you'll like.

It showcases a quick hack to make your content way less boring by changing just one thing in your next script.

Watch Now

*For context, you'll have to watch! 👆

That's all for this week.

Any questions? You can to reply to this email and I'll get back to you.

Speak soon,
George 👋