Episode Production Workflow
Complete guide to producing an episode from concept to multi-platform publishing
Master the complete StoryBook production pipeline. This guide walks you through the 5-tab workflow that takes your episode from concept to YouTube.
Episode Lifecycle
Episodes progress through 7 states:
draft → story → storyboard → generating → editing → ready → published
Each state unlocks specific workspace tabs and features.
Tab 1: Story (Always Unlocked)
Story Ideation
Refine your episode premise using AI brainstorming.
- Input: Provide a rough concept or logline
- Brainstorm: AI suggests plot beats and character arcs
- Refine: Edit and approve the premise
Full Story Generation
Deepseek V3 writes a complete narrative.
- Genre/Style: Inherited from Project settings
- Premise: Auto-filled from Season Generator or manually entered
- Output: 800-1500 word story treatment
Screenplay Conversion
Transform your story into industry-standard screenplay format.
- Scene Headings: INT/EXT with location
- Action: Scene descriptions
- Dialogue: Character lines with parentheticals
- Approval: Lock screenplay to unlock Visuals tab
Status Transition: draft → story
Tab 2: Visuals (Unlocked after Screenplay)
Shot List Generation
AI extracts shots from your screenplay.
Each Shot Includes:
- Scene number & shot number
- Action description
- Camera direction (pan, tilt, zoom, dolly, crane, static)
- Duration (1-60 seconds)
- AI-ready prompt (Kling/Runway format)
Video Generation
Generate AI videos from shot prompts.
Supported Providers:
- Kling: Best for character consistency
- Runway Gen-3: Best for creative effects
- Hailuo: Cost-effective alternative
Process:
- Review shot list
- Select shots to generate
- Choose provider (or use BYOK)
- Submit batch job
- Track status:
pending→queued→generating→completed
Cost Tracking: StoryBook tracks estimated and actual costs per shot.
Status Transition: story → storyboard → generating
Tab 3: Audio (Unlocked after Shot List)
Dialogue Extraction
Automatically pull character lines from screenplay.
Voice Cloning
Assign voice profiles to characters.
Providers:
- ElevenLabs: High-quality voice cloning
- PlayHT: Cost-effective alternative
- Azure/Google: Enterprise options
Process:
- Upload voice sample (30 seconds minimum)
- Create voice asset
- Assign to character
- Generate all dialogue lines in bulk
Music & SFX
Add background score and sound effects.
- Music: Suno AI music generation
- SFX: Shared resource library (org-level)
- Ambient: Atmospheric tracks
Tab 4: Edit (Unlocked at "editing" status)
Timeline Editor
Multi-track video and audio editing.
Tracks:
- Video (shots in sequence)
- Dialogue (character lines)
- Music
- SFX
- Ambient
Features:
- Drag-and-drop reordering
- Transitions between shots
- Volume controls per track
- Timeline scrubbing
Final Render
Export the completed episode.
Status Transition: generating → editing → ready
Tab 5: Publish (Unlocked at "ready" status)
Platform Connections
Connect your social accounts via OAuth.
Supported Platforms:
- YouTube
- TikTok
Publishing Options
Content Types:
- Full: Complete episode
- Short: 60-second vertical clip
- Teaser: 15-second preview
- Trailer: Season trailer
Scheduling
Queue content for optimal posting times.
Analytics Dashboard
Track performance across all platforms:
- Views
- Likes, comments, shares
- Watch time
- Revenue (YouTube monetization)
- Subscriber growth
- Retention curves
Status Transition: ready → published
Cost Management
BYOK (Bring Your Own Key)
Provide your own API keys to reduce costs:
- Kling
- Runway
- Hailuo
- ElevenLabs
- PlayHT
- Suno
Cost Tracking
Every generation job shows:
- Estimated Cost: Pre-generation estimate
- Actual Cost: Post-generation total
- Per-Episode Rollup: Total production cost
Best Practices
1. Build Your Asset Bible First
Create characters and locations before generating episodes. This ensures:
- Consistent character appearances across shots
- Accurate location references
- Better AI generation quality
2. Lock Screenplay Before Shots
Once you approve the screenplay, avoid edits. Regenerating the shot list can cause inconsistencies.
3. Batch Generate Shots
Generate all shots in one batch job for:
- Better style consistency (Kling uses same model)
- Cost efficiency (bulk pricing)
- Faster turnaround
4. Preview Before Publishing
Always review the final edit before publishing. Once published to YouTube, edits require re-uploading.
5. Use Scheduled Publishing
Queue content ahead of time for:
- Consistent posting schedule
- Optimal time zones
- Cross-platform coordination