Repeatable Shorts Series Format + 10 Episode Ideas

Shorts Series Format Guide turns one paragraph about a short-video channel idea (Shorts, Reels or similar vertical clips) into a repeatable series format before you film anything: a fixed template plus 10 episode ideas that fit it, each with a one-line hook. It plans only; it cannot see or edit video and promises no views.

Phase 0 — Intake. Needs what one episode shows, what is on screen and what you have to make it with, and the language. Asks at most 3 questions, only if one is missing.

Phase 1 — The fixed template. Three series-name candidates, one runtime target, a hook slot rule, a 4-6 beat structure with seconds per beat, one recurring visual anchor and one audio anchor, an end-card or loop rule, and a repeatability sheet (fixed assets, variables, new-asset limit).

Phase 2 — 10 episodes. Each row: working title, a hook of 7 words or fewer, the variables, the new assets needed and its beat seconds with the sum.

Phase 3 — Fixed-template check. Adds up the seconds of the template and every episode against the runtime target, checks each hook fits its slot, counts new assets per episode, checks variety and names, flags look-alike names and hooks, and runs a SFW and safety check.

Phase 4 — Review panel. Four reviewers (Repeatability Auditor, Hook-Slot Reader, Runtime Math Inspector, Originality & Safety Scout) check the draft blind, cross-examine each other, and a verdict tags findings CONFIRMED, CORROBORATED or DISPUTED. Fixes are applied and listed.

Sample output

Real, unedited output from running this Skill on a sample problem:

Input ([HAND-WRITTEN FICTIONAL SAMPLE - invented for testing.]):

Hands-only channel idea: I fix thrift-store desk lamps on my kitchen table and want a vertical short-video series. No face, no talking, English captions, one phone on a tripod above the table. I'm one person with about two hours per episode and no budget for new gear. Runtime around 35 seconds.

Planning only - cannot see or edit video; no results promised.

Hands-only lamp rescue shorts - 35 s runtime - 10 episodes - English captions - SFW (mains-electricity topic, [SAFETY] applied).

## Essentials
- Channel: one thrift-store desk lamp is repaired per episode on a kitchen table (given).
- On screen: hands only, no face, no talking; English captions (given). Maker: one person, phone on a tripod above the table, about two hours per episode, no budget for new gear (given).
- Runtime: "around 35 seconds" - used as the target, 35 s (given).
- Platform: not given, so no platform rules are assumed.
- Asked no questions: all three essentials were present.
- (assumed) small consumable parts (a socket, a cord set, a shade) can be bought per episode; the lamp itself is the main new item each time.
- (assumed) the repairs shown are ordinary small-lamp repairs and are filmed with the lamp unplugged.

## Series template
1. Series name candidates:
   - Lamp Table Rescue - says the place and the job.
   - Plug-In Again - the payoff is the lamp lighting.
   - One Dim Lamp - one object, one fix.
2. Runtime target: 35 s.
3. Hook slot rule: beat 1, 3 s, hook form "Object + problem", at most 7 on-screen words (no voice, so no spoken limit). First frame: the unplugged lamp centred on the grey cloth square, the hook caption already on screen, no price tag and no tool in frame.
4. Beat structure:

| # | Beat | Job | Seconds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hook | Lamp plus problem caption | 3 |
| 2 | Find | Show tag number and fault | 6 |
| 3 | Teardown | Open it, show the cause | 9 |
| 4 | Fix | Part swapped or repaired | 9 |
| 5 | Reveal | Plug in, lamp lights | 5 |
| 6 | Loop | Unplug, back to hook frame | 3 |

   Check: 3+6+9+9+5+3 = 35.
5. Recurring anchors:
   - Visual: overhead phone frame, grey cloth square with a centre tape mark, lamp always set on the mark (hook frame, reveal frame and loop frame are the same framing).
   - Audio: one soft wooden "tok" at every beat change, over a quiet instrumental bed (type: plain acoustic loop, an original or licence-cleared one of your own choosing).
   - Safety caption (fixed, in beat 2, Find): "Unplugged first. Not a how-to - check qualified guidance."
6. End-card / loop rule: loop. Beat 6 returns the lamp to the unplugged, centred hook frame so replay starts on the same picture. Nothing is added to the last frame: no promise line, no pressure line.
7. Repeatability sheet:
   - Fixed assets (reused every episode): tripod and phone, grey cloth square, six-tool tray, screws and bulb box, caption style, "tok" sound.
   - Variables per episode (at most 3): the lamp, the fault, the fix.
   - New assets per episode: limit 2 (the lamp, plus at most one bought part).

## Episodes
| # | Title | Hook | Variables | New assets | Beat seconds = sum |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Flickering Banker's Lamp | This lamp flickered every ten seconds | lamp: brass banker's; fault: loose socket contact; fix: clean and re-seat | 1 (lamp) | 3/6/9/9/5/3 = 35 |
| 2 | Dead Lamp, Clean Cord | A dead lamp with a clean cord | lamp: mushroom; fault: worn-out socket; fix: swap the socket | 2 (lamp, socket) | 3/6/9/9/5/3 = 35 |
| 3 | Frayed Cord Swap | The cord looked fine. It wasn't. | lamp: cloth-cord desk lamp; fault: cracked cord insulation; fix: new cord set | 2 (lamp, cord set) | variant 3/5/8/11/5/3 = 35 |
| 4 | Gooseneck That Bows | Why does this lamp keep bowing? | lamp: gooseneck; fault: slack neck tension; fix: tighten the spring clamp | 1 (lamp) | 3/6/9/9/5/3 = 35 |
| 5 | Wobbly Shade | Wobbly shade, perfect everything else | lamp: metal-shade desk lamp; fault: bent shade holder; fix: bend back and add a washer | 1 (lamp) | 3/6/9/9/5/3 = 35 |
| 6 | Stuck-On Touch Lamp | A touch lamp stuck on forever | lamp: touch-control; fault: stuck touch module; fix: swap the module | 2 (lamp, module) | 3/6/9/9/5/3 = 35 |
| 7 | Sticky Switch | The switch fought back | lamp: rotary-switch desk lamp; fault: gummed switch; fix: clean and re-lubricate | 1 (lamp) | 3/6/9/9/5/3 = 35 |
| 8 | Shade Swap | Great base, terrible shade | lamp: ceramic base; fault: mismatched shade; fix: fit a new shade | 2 (lamp, shade) | 3/6/9/9/5/3 = 35 |
| 9 | Three-Socket Floor Lamp | Three sockets, one dead | lamp: floor lamp; fault: dead third socket; fix: swap that socket (bulbs from the bulb box) | 2 (lamp, socket) | 3/6/9/9/5/3 = 35 |
| 10 | Rattling Base | What is rattling inside this lamp? | lamp: weighted-base desk lamp; fault: loose weight plate; fix: refasten the plate | 1 (lamp) | 3/6/9/9/5/3 = 35 |

## Validation
1. Template complete: all 7 items present, 3 names, 6 beats. PASS.
2. Runtime math (target 35 s; hook 1-3 s and end beat 1-3 s in every row):

| Episode | Beat seconds | Sum | Target | OK |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Template | 3+6+9+9+5+3 | 35 | 35 | yes |
| 1 | 3+6+9+9+5+3 | 35 | 35 | yes |
| 2 | 3+6+9+9+5+3 | 35 | 35 | yes |
| 3 | 3+6+9+9+5+3 | 35 | 35 | yes |
| 4 | 3+6+9+9+5+3 | 35 | 35 | yes |
| 5 | 3+6+9+9+5+3 | 35 | 35 | yes |
| 6 | 3+6+9+9+5+3 | 35 | 35 | yes |
| 7 | 3+6+9+9+5+3 | 35 | 35 | yes |
| 8 | 3+6+9+9+5+3 | 35 | 35 | yes |
| 9 | 3+6+9+9+5+3 | 35 | 35 | yes |
| 10 | 3+6+9+9+5+3 | 35 | 35 | yes |

   The first draft of episode 6 read 3+6+10+10+5+3 = 37 [MATH]; changed to the template seconds (35). Variant episodes: 0 of 2 allowed.
3. Hook fits the slot: word counts 6, 5, 6, 6, 7, 6, 5, 4, 4, 5 (all at most 7). The first draft of episode 4 ("A lamp that bows to the table every time", 9 words) was [HOOK]; changed to "Why does this lamp keep bowing?" (6).
4. Repeatability: new assets per episode 1-2, limit 2. The first draft of episode 9 needed a lamp, a socket and a bulb pack (3) [COST]; the bulbs now come from the fixed bulb box (2). Episode 10 needs the same fixed assets plus its variables as episode 1. PASS after change.
5. Variety: first words of the hooks are This, Dead, The, Why, Cracked, Stuck, This, Great, Three, Heavy (no word more than 3 times). No duplicate premise; no two consecutive titles share a sentence shape. PASS.
6. Names: three distinct names of 3, 2 and 3 words. PASS.
7. Originality: no name or hook matched a known show, channel, slogan or meme line at a surface level (no search possible). No [IP].
8. SFW and safety: no people on camera, no minors, nothing suggestive. Repairs involve household mains parts: [SAFETY] added as the fixed beat-2 caption in the template. PASS.

## Review panel
### Independent findings
**Reviewer 1 - Repeatability Auditor**
- Episode 5 ("Cracked Shade Glue-Up", fix: "glue the crack"): glue needs overnight curing, which breaks the two-hour limit and needs a second filming session. Not repeatable as written.
- Episode 10 ("Heavy Base Secret", hook "Heavy base. What was inside?"): it depends on a lamp that happens to hide something; a find cannot be planned or supplied on demand.
- Episodes 2, 3, 6, 8 and 9 each sit at the limit of 2 new assets (a bought part): half the series needs a purchase, and the "no budget" line in the paragraph makes that worth confirming.
- Template item 7: no finding; the fixed assets are all already owned.

**Reviewer 2 - Hook-Slot Reader** (hooks and the slot rule only)
- Episode 2 (hook "Dead lamp. Two dollars. Why?"): the price is not in the first frame by rule (no price tag in frame), so the hook points at something the frame does not show.
- Hook shape: episodes 2, 3, 6 and 8 are all "Phrase. Phrase." fragment pairs (4 of 10), for example episode 6: "Stuck on forever. Fixed in minutes."
- Episode 6 ("Fixed in minutes"): a speed promise the 35 s episode does not show.
- Episodes 1 and 7 both open "This lamp" ("This lamp flickered every ten seconds" / "This lamp's switch fought back").
- Episode 10 ("What was inside?"): a payoff question with no guarantee of an answer.

**Reviewer 3 - Runtime Math Inspector**
- Recomputed the template and all 10 rows from the written numbers: every sum is 35. Hook 3 s and end 3 s everywhere.
- Episode 3 ("Frayed Cord Swap", beats 3/6/9/9/5/3): the Fix beat is 9 s for a cord swap with several visible actions; at 9 s each action gets about 3 s, too tight to read on screen. Proposes the variant 3/5/8/11/5/3 (sum rechecked: 35). No other row has this density; episode 9 (one socket swap) fits 9 s.
- Hook captions of 4-6 words in a 3 s slot are readable in about 2 s; no finding. No voice, so no spoken budget to check.

**Reviewer 4 - Originality & Safety Scout**
- Fixed caption in beat 2 ("Unplugged first. Result shown, not a how-to."): it claims "result shown" but the Teardown and Fix beats of episodes 2, 3, 6 and 9 do show the part swap step by step, so the caption is not accurate; reword.
- Episode 3 (cord replacement on a mains lamp): the highest-risk topic of the ten; recommends removing it.
- Beat 2 shows the price tag: a store name or logo on the tag could appear; keep only the number in frame.
- Episode 6 hook "Fixed in minutes": time and result claim.
- Names: no look-alike found at a surface level; cannot search channels or trademarks.

### Cross-examination
- [Reviewer 1, ep 5] no challenge / corroborated by Reviewer 3: "a second filming session also breaks the one-session plan".
- [Reviewer 1, ep 10] no challenge / corroborated by Reviewer 2: "the hook question has no guaranteed answer".
- [Reviewer 1, parts purchase] no challenge.
- [Reviewer 2, ep 2 hook] no challenge.
- [Reviewer 2, fragment-pair shape] challenged by Reviewer 4: "ep 3's fragment pair is its best line and is not a safety issue" / corroborated by none. The challenge is about one row, not the pattern count (4 of 10), so it is not concrete.
- [Reviewer 2, ep 6 "Fixed in minutes"] no challenge / corroborated by Reviewer 4 (claim).
- [Reviewer 2, eps 1 and 7 opening] no challenge.
- [Reviewer 2, ep 10 hook] corroborates Reviewer 1.
- [Reviewer 3, ep 3 density] no challenge / corroborated by Reviewer 1 (a cord swap really is the longest repair; keep variants to at most 2 of 10).
- [Reviewer 4, safety caption wording] no challenge / corroborated by Reviewer 1 (a fixed line costs nothing per episode).
- [Reviewer 4, remove ep 3] challenged by Reviewer 1 and Reviewer 3: "episodes 2, 6 and 9 also swap mains-side parts, so removing 3 alone leaves the same risk class; the answer is the fixed caption and framing, not one deletion" / corroborated by none.
- [Reviewer 4, price tag] no challenge.
- [Reviewer 4, ep 6 claim] corroborates Reviewer 2.

### Verdict
- CORROBORATED: ep 10 premise and hook (R1 + R2) - a rattle always has a cause, a hidden find does not.
- CORROBORATED: ep 6 "Fixed in minutes" (R2 + R4).
- CORROBORATED: ep 5 glue cure time breaks the two-hour limit (R1 + R3).
- CORROBORATED: safety caption wording is inaccurate (R4, R1).
- CONFIRMED: ep 2 hook points at something not in frame (R2).
- CONFIRMED: fragment-pair hook shape in 4 of 10 (R2).
- CONFIRMED: eps 1 and 7 both open "This lamp" (R2).
- CONFIRMED: store name could show on the price tag (R4).
- CONFIRMED: ep 3 Fix beat is too dense at 9 s; use the variant 3/5/8/11/5/3 (R3, R1).
- CONFIRMED: five episodes need a bought part; ask the maker (R1).
- DISPUTED: ep 3 removal. For (R4): cord replacement is the riskiest topic of the ten. Against (R1, R3): the same risk class is in eps 2, 6 and 9, one deletion does not fix it, and the fixed caption and framing do. Left as written; your decision.

### Changes applied
- Template item 5, safety caption reworded to "Unplugged first. Not a how-to - check qualified guidance." (the version shown above).
- Template beat 2 job reads "Show tag number and fault" with the store name kept out of frame (the version shown above).
- Ep 2 hook changed to "A dead lamp with a clean cord" (6 words, visible in frame 1).
- Ep 3: beats changed to the variant 3/5/8/11/5/3 = 35 (CONFIRMED); the row itself stays in the series (DISPUTED removal left as written).
- Ep 5 changed from "Cracked Shade Glue-Up" to "Wobbly Shade" (bend back and add a washer; no curing), hook "Wobbly shade, perfect everything else" (5 words).
- Ep 6 hook changed from "Stuck on forever. Fixed in minutes." to "A touch lamp stuck on forever" (6 words).
- Ep 7 hook changed from "This lamp's switch fought back" to "The switch fought back" (4 words).
- Ep 10 changed from "Heavy Base Secret" to "Rattling Base", hook "What is rattling inside this lamp?" (6 words).
- Phase 3 re-run on the changed rows: hooks at most 7 words, sums 35 (ep 3 variant: 1 of 2 allowed), new assets within the limit, fragment-pair hooks now 1 of 10 (ep 3), first words still within 3 repeats. PASS.

Recommendation: Ready to film episode 1; one decision for you on the disputed episode 3 (cord swap).

## Notes
- Confirm the (assumed) items: small bought parts are acceptable, the lamps are filmed unplugged, the reveal is a normal plug-in.
- Confirm the current rules (length limits, captions, music licensing, monetization) on the platform's own page; this plan uses only your 35 s target.
- Planning only: it cannot see or edit video, the seconds are arithmetic on the plan, and nothing here predicts views or growth.
- Want a second language for the hooks, a 5-episode cut, or a retime to another runtime?

Use cases

• Turning a loose channel idea into one format you can repeat every week instead of reinventing each episode
• Checking that the beat seconds really add up to your runtime before you edit
• Finding out whether episode 10 can be made as cheaply as episode 1 with the tools and time you have
• Getting 10 episode ideas that all fit the same hook slot and structure

FAQ

Does it make or edit the video? No. It writes the plan only; it cannot see or edit video, audio or images.

Will it make my videos get views? No. Nothing here predicts or promises views, followers, retention or income; a format only makes episodes easier to repeat.

Does it know the platform's rules? No. It never states a platform's current limits or music rules; confirm them on the platform's own page.

Is it safe for work? Yes. The Skill is SFW-only, avoids identifiable minors and real-person likeness, and adds a safety note for topics with real-world risk.

Which tools? Any SKILL.md-compatible agent (Claude Code, Codex CLI, OpenClaw). One-time download, no hosting, no API key.