# Hooks

> Generate YouTube video hooks using the Kallaway desire-based framework. Produces Three Hook Alignment (visual + spoken + text), applies the Four Commandments, maps to core desires, and scores each hook. Trigger on phrases like 'write a hook for', 'hook ideas for my video', 'help me with the intro', 'generate hooks', 'write the opening for', or any request for YouTube video hooks, intros, or opening lines.

- Skill: `duncan-buildroom/hooks` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add duncan-buildroom/hooks`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/duncan-buildroom/hooks/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: duncan-buildroom (https://skillmd.com/u/duncan-buildroom)
- Updated: 2026-09-10
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/duncan-buildroom/hooks

---


# YouTube Hook Generator — Kallaway Framework

Generate high-retention YouTube hooks using the full Kallaway desire-based system. Every hook is scored against the Four Commandments and delivered as a Three Hook Alignment (visual + spoken + text).

## Personalization
This skill works in *your* brand voice, for *your* audience. Before running, load the brand profile at `~/.claude/brand-profile.md`.
- If it doesn't exist, run the **personalize** skill first (or just tell me your niche, audience, and offer — I'll create it).
- Use the profile's Audience and Main-pain to write hooks in the language your viewers would actually use to themselves, not generic marketing copy.
- If a field this skill needs is blank, I'll ask one quick question and save the answer back to the profile.
- Never invent facts or results about the user — use only what's in the profile, or ask.

## When This Skill Activates

**Activate when the user wants to:**
- Write a hook for a video they're planning
- Generate opening lines or intro scripts
- Improve an existing hook
- Get multiple hook options to test

**Example triggers:**
- "Write hooks for my video on automating client reports"
- "Hook ideas for 'How I Got My First 10 Clients'"
- "Help me nail the intro for this video"
- `/hooks` or `/hooks <video concept>`

## Input

The user provides one or more of:
- **Video concept/topic** — what the video is about
- **Idea brief** — a positioning or ideation output
- **Outline** — the video's structure
- **Key talking points** — the most interesting facts/reveals

If the user only provides a topic, ask ONE question: "What's the most surprising thing in this video that your audience probably doesn't know?" That answer becomes the hook's core material.

## The Kallaway Framework

### Phase 1 — Identify the Desire

**Map to one of the Four Horsemen:**
- **Money** — making it, saving it, growing it
- **Time** — saving it, not wasting it, getting hours back
- **Health** — reducing stress, avoiding burnout, mental clarity
- **Status** — looking smart, being ahead, impressing peers

**Apply One Standard Deviation:**
Don't target the core desire directly — that triggers the BS detector. Package it one step away using a proxy desire.

| Core Desire | Direct (BS detector) | Proxy (one standard deviation) |
|------------|-------------------------------|-------------------------------|
| Money | "Make more money" | "Automate the part of your work you hate" |
| Time | "Save 10 hours a week" | "Never start a project from a blank page again" |
| Status | "Become an expert" | "Build what your peers think takes a whole team" |
| Health | "Reduce work stress" | "Stop manually doing what a tool handles in seconds" |

### Phase 2 — Generate Hooks Using Five Desire-Based Variations

Generate at least one hook in EACH variation (fill the brackets with the user's real topic):

**1. About Me (looking backward)**
"I just [accomplished X] using [Y]"

**2. If I (looking forward)**
"If I wanted to [achieve X], I would [Y]"

**3. To You (viewer as character)**
"If you're trying to [X], use [Y]"

**4. Can You (viewer as question)**
"Is it possible to [X] under [Y]?"

**5. He/She Just Did (third party proof)**
"[Z] just accomplished [X] under [Y]"

### Phase 3 — Apply Hook Formats

For the strongest 2-3 desire-based hooks, rewrite through the best-fitting formats:

1. **Secret Reveal** — tease unknown insights or future implications
2. **Case Study** — how a subject achieved a result unexpectedly
3. **Comparison** — instantly compare two versions to show optimal state
4. **Question** — directly implant curiosity
5. **Education** — introduce a step-by-step process
6. **List** — ordered set of items
7. **Contrarian** — bold take against the grain
8. **Personal Experience** — first-person story framing
9. **Problem** — agitate a pain point, then set up solution

Pick the 2-3 formats that match the content. Don't force all nine.

### Phase 4 — Score with Six Hook Power Words

For each hook, check it contains:

1. **Subject** — who the video is about (I, we, you, [the person])
2. **Action** — the verb (built, automated, replaced, discovered)
3. **Objective** — the end result/outcome
4. **Contrast** — comparing states (before vs. after, 0 to X, manual vs. automated)
5. **Proof** (optional) — qualifies the perspective ("again", "after testing 50 tools")
6. **Time** (optional) — adds urgency ("in one weekend", "in under 5 minutes")

### Phase 5 — Three Hook Alignment

For the top 3 hooks, generate the full alignment:

**Visual Hook** — What is shown on screen in the first 1-3 seconds?
- Triggers "bottoms-up processing" (subconscious visual response ~200ms)
- Colors, motion, unexpected imagery

**Spoken Hook** — What is said in the first 5-15 seconds?
- The hook line, written at a fifth-grade reading level
- 1-3 sentences maximum
- Must open a curiosity loop the video closes

**Text Hook** — What text overlay appears?
- The title or shortened version
- Complements (doesn't duplicate) the spoken hook
- Creates a curiosity gap WITH the spoken hook

**All three must point at the same idea simultaneously.**

### Phase 6 — Four Commandments Checklist

Score each top hook (pass/fail):

1. **Alignment** — Do visual, spoken, and text hooks match? ✓/✗
2. **Speed to Value** — Zero delay, zero fluff before the hook lands? ✓/✗
3. **Clarity** — Viewer knows exactly what the video is about in one sentence? ✓/✗
4. **Curiosity** — Opens a question in the viewer's mind? ✓/✗

Must pass ALL FOUR to recommend. If one fails, note the fix.

## Output Format

```
## Desire Mapping
- **Core Desire:** [Horseman]
- **Proxy Desire:** [One standard deviation]

## Top Hooks

### Hook 1 — [Format] + [Variation]
**Spoken:** "[The hook line]"
**Visual:** [What's on screen]
**Text overlay:** "[The text]"
**Power Words:** Subject ✓ Action ✓ Objective ✓ Contrast ✓ Time ✓ (5/6)
**Commandments:** Alignment ✓ Speed ✓ Clarity ✓ Curiosity ✓ (4/4)

### Hook 2 — ...
### Hook 3 — ...

## All Five Variations (for reference)
1. About Me: "..."
2. If I: "..."
3. To You: "..."
4. Can You: "..."
5. He/She Just Did: "..."

## Recommendation
[Which hook to use and why — direct and opinionated]
```

## Key Principles

- **The hook is the most important 15 seconds.** More time here than on 5 minutes of body content.
- **Fifth-grade reading level.** Short sentences. Common words. Complex language kills hooks.
- **Curiosity without clickbait.** The hook must promise something the video delivers. An audience bounces permanently on oversell.
- **Contrarian hooks need authority.** "X is wrong" only works with immediate credibility (research, data, personal proof).
- **Negative framing pulls harder.** "You're wasting 5 hours a week" outperforms "Save 5 hours a week." Loss aversion is real.
- **One hook per video.** Don't cram multiple angles into the opening. Pick one. Commit.