Script the first 1-3 second TikTok hook: the spoken line

TikTok Hook Scripter

Write the first 1 to 3 seconds of a TikTok video: the spoken line, the on-screen text, and the opening visual, all firing at once. This is the single biggest lever on the whole platform. TikTok's ranker runs on completion rate, and a viewer decides to stay or swipe before second three. If the hook does not win, nothing downstream gets watched.

When to use

• User has a video idea and needs the opening to stop the scroll
• User's videos "die in the first second" and they want a stronger open
• User wants to pick a proven hook shape and fill it with their own angle
• Before filming, to lock the spoken line and the on-screen text

What this skill produces

For one video idea, a ready-to-film hook block:

• Spoken line (what you say to camera in the first 1-3 seconds)
• On-screen text (the muted-first promise, 3 to 7 words)
• Opening visual (what is in frame one: result, tension, or interrupt)
• The formula used and its primary goal
• A loop-close note (how to end the video so it restarts for a rewatch)

It does not write the caption (hand to tt-caption-writer) or the full body script beat-by-beat unless asked; it locks the open, which is where retention is won or lost.

Formulas this skill uses

Code	Formula	Primary goal	Best for
T1	Cold-Open Result	completion	show the finished outcome first, promise the how
T2	Pattern Interrupt	completion	break the expected frame so the thumb stops
T3	Specific-Number Reveal	saves	one odd, concrete number that reframes the topic
T4	Open Loop Question	comments	ask the exact question the video answers
T5	Relatable Call-Out	shares	a hyper-specific shared moment worth sending
T6	Bold Claim, No Hedge	comments	a flat contrarian claim the comments will argue
T7	Listicle Promise	saves	a numbered payoff with on-screen counters
T8	Story In Medias Res	completion	drop into the peak of a real story
T9	Tutorial Cold Start	saves	start step one with the result previewed
T10	Trend-Ride With A Twist	shares	a trending sound bent to your niche

Full skeletons (three layers each) in ../../references/hook-formulas.md.

Pick by goal first

Goal	Reach for
Completion	T1, T2, T8
Saves	T3, T7, T9
Comments	T4, T6
Shares	T5, T10

Steps

Voice profile first (all drafts). If ../../references/voice-profile.md has filled: yes, load it and match the user's voice fingerprint, hard rules, and CTA/link style throughout. If it is not filled, mention once that tt-humanizer --mode profile can learn their voice from a few posts, then proceed with the generic voice rules.

1. Gather inputs. The video idea, the niche/audience, the one promise the video delivers, and the goal (completion / saves / comments / shares).
2. Pick the formula. Use the goal table to shortlist, then suggest 2-3 that also fit the idea and let the user choose. For a trend ride (T10), hand the sound-fit question to tt-trend-mapper first.
3. Write all three layers. Spoken line, on-screen text, opening visual. The spoken line and the on-screen text MUST differ (muted-first viewing). Respect the 2026 rules:
   • The result or the tension is in frame one. No greeting, no logo, no zoom.
   • One specific number where the claim allows it.
   • Say it the way a person talks; read it out loud.
   • No AI vocabulary cluster (one marker is a slip; three in the hook is a script). Em dashes: .. for a breath in the spoken line, at most one on the on-screen card.
   • No sincerity opener ("not gonna lie", "real talk") and no "Here's what nobody tells you" reveal bridge; say the thing.
4. Write the loop-close note. How the last frame should land so a rewatch feels natural (a rewatch is almost a second view).
5. Humanizer pass. Run the spoken line through the tt-humanizer V3 rules to strip script tells before it ever reaches camera: AI vocab by density, stacked triads, reveal bridges, sincerity openers, written-not- spoken phrasing. Make it sayable; never insert a punch line for rhythm.
6. Approval card. Show: formula, the three layers, primary goal, the loop-close note, and an estimated hook duration.
7. Hand off. Offer tt-caption-writer for the caption and settings, and tt-content-planner if they are batching multiple hooks.

Hard rules

Global voice rules: see root SKILL.md Voice rules. Additional skill-specific rules:

• The hook is the first 1-3 seconds of the video, not the caption. Never let the caption do the hook's job.
• The spoken line and the on-screen text are two different jobs. Do not repeat the same words in both.
• Frame one shows something (result, tension, interrupt). No dead air, no intro.
• One specific number in the hook beats any adjective.
• The hook opens the loop; it never answers itself.

Anti-patterns (skill will refuse)

• "Hey guys" / "welcome back" / "in this video" openers.
• A logo animation or slow zoom before the words start.
• Reading the caption aloud as the hook.
• Promising a result the video never shows on screen.
• ALL CAPS spoken scripts (you cannot shout for 30 seconds).
• More than one em dash, or an AI vocabulary cluster, in the on-screen text.
• A staged punch line or "The result?" reveal inserted for rhythm.
• Five stacked calls to action.

Resources

• ../../references/hook-formulas.md - all 10 TikTok hook formulas (three layers each)
• ../../references/algorithm-heuristics.md - why completion and the first second rule everything
• references/hook-anatomy.md - the three-layer hook teardown and timing budget

Related skills

• tt-caption-writer - the caption, TikTok settings, and hashtags
• tt-trend-mapper - check sound fit before a trend-ride hook (T10)
• tt-humanizer - scrub the spoken script so it sounds human on camera
• tt-content-planner - batch multiple hooks for the week