Hook Writer

---
name: hook-writer
description: Write scroll-stopping hooks for Meta ads — the first 3 seconds of video and the first eye-hit of a static — and generate a tested hook bank across angles. Use when asked to write hooks, fix a weak opening, improve thumb-stop rate, write the first 3 seconds, generate hook ideas or a hook bank, fix ads people scroll past, beat a tired hook, or someone says 'nobody stops on our ads'. For choosing the arguments behind hooks, see ten-angles-copy. For the full creative around the hook, see meta-ads-creative.
metadata:
  version: 1.0.0
---

# Hook writer

The hook decides whether the rest of the ad exists. On video it is the first **3
seconds**; on a static it is the first thing the eye hits. Everything else in the
creative is rented until the hook pays for it.

Diversity note: different hooks across versions is the checklist rule — and in 2026
it is also how delivery works, since the system reads creative to pick audiences
and rewards genuine variety. A hook bank is not a nice-to-have; it is the raw
material of the account.

## Before you start

| Input | Why |
| --- | --- |
| The angle (or the full angle table for a bank) | A hook executes one angle; the bank spans many |
| Persona Problems and Questions, verbatim | Hooks are made of their words |
| Format — video, static, or both | Different mechanics, same argument |
| Real proof and numbers, if any | Proof/Number hooks need them; none supplied, none written |

## Step 1 — Pass the three checks (every hook, both formats)

| Check | Video | Static |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Something grabs in 3 seconds | Motion, a face, or a bold line | The bold line IS the grab |
| Works with the sound off | Most people watch on mute — text overlay carries it | Always silent by nature |
| Brand shows up early, not only at the end | You want it *remembered* | Logo present without stealing the hook |

## Step 2 — Build the hook from the angle formula

The hook is the angle's fill-in formula, compressed to its sharpest line —
formulas and worked examples live in **ten-angles-copy**. Compression rules:

- **≤8 words for a static overlay** (the 2–7 word budget, one more allowed for a
  question). Video opening lines can run slightly longer because they are spoken.
- Their words, not yours: *"Graduated in 2025. Still no job offer."* stops the
  scroll because the reader is in it.
- One angle per hook. A hook mixing Enemy and Proof lands as neither.

## Step 3 — Format mechanics

**Video (first 3 seconds):**
- Open mid-action or mid-sentence — never with a logo card or a wind-up.
- The text overlay states the hook even when the audio says it; mute is default.
- A face looking at camera, motion, or a pattern-break visual buys the 3 seconds
  the words need.

**Static (first eye-hit):**
- The hook line owns the visual hierarchy — biggest, highest-contrast element.
- Design rules apply: padding ≥10% wide / 15% vertical, clean line height — see
  meta-ads-creative's design pass.

## Step 4 — Generate the bank

For a hook bank: **one hook per available angle per persona**, then the strongest
2–3 get variants. Bank shape: 10 angles × 2 personas = 20 distinct hooks before
any variants. Label every hook with its angle and persona so winners trace back.

Rank by: (1) most specific pain named, (2) shortest path to "that's me", (3)
distinctness from the others already banked. Do not rank by cleverness — clever is
the author's pleasure, specific is the reader's.

## Output

```
# Hook bank: <product>

| # | Hook | Angle | Persona | Format | 3 checks |
| 1 | "Graduated in 2025. Still no job offer." | Callout | fresh-grad | static+video | ✓✓✓ |
| 2 | ... | Enemy | ... | ... | ... |

Dropped angles: <which, why — no proof, no story, etc.>
Top 3 for first test: <#, #, #> — <one line why each>
Every hook: ≤8 words (static) · their words · one angle
```

## When it breaks

| What you see | What it means | The fix |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 3-second video drop-off is a cliff | The wind-up opening — logo card, "hi, we're…" | Open mid-action; hook line on screen from frame one |
| Views but no comprehension | Hook depends on audio | Mute test: overlay text must carry it alone |
| Hooks test fine, all perform the same | Twenty phrasings of one angle | The bank spans angles, not synonyms — recheck labels |
| Clever hook, no clicks | Author's pleasure, not reader's pain | Rank by specificity; rewrite from Problems verbatim |
| Hook stops scroll, ad doesn't convert | Hook writes a cheque the ad can't cash | Hook and offer must be the same promise — see offer-builder |
| Static hook invisible at phone size | Hierarchy or padding failure | Hook owns the contrast; design pass per meta-ads-creative |
| Great hook dies in 2 weeks | Normal fatigue, not failure | Rotate from the bank — this is why it exists |

Never fix a weak hook by adding a second sentence to it. A hook that needs
explaining is a body line, not a hook — go back to the angle and compress again.

## Rules

- **Three checks on every hook**, because a hook that fails mute or the 3-second
  grab fails silently at full spend.
- **One angle per hook**, because mixed arguments land as neither.
- **Their words over yours**, because the reader stops for their own sentence.
- **No proof hooks without proof**, because an invented number in the loudest line
  of the ad is the fastest route to a claims problem.
- **The bank spans angles and personas**, because twenty synonyms of one hook is
  one hook — and delivery treats it that way too.

## Related skills

- **ten-angles-copy** — the formulas hooks compress.
- **pqr-persona-builder** — the verbatim Problems and Questions hooks are made of.
- **meta-ads-creative** — the full creative and design pass around the hook.
- **ugc-style-video-script** — scripts whose opening line is this skill's output.