Pride and Prejudice — book video sample

About the book

When wealthy Mr Bingley moves into Netherfield, Mrs Bennet sees a husband for one of her five daughters. His proud friend Mr Darcy insults Elizabeth Bennet at a ball, and two clever, stubborn people spend the rest of the novel discovering how wrong first impressions can be.

Public domain: Published in 1813, it is in the public domain. Copyright rules differ by country — check your own. Source text: Project Gutenberg #1342.

Why it works as a short video

Enemies-to-lovers is one of the most popular tropes on BookTok, and Austen essentially wrote the template. Ballroom scenes, letters and the famous first line all give you strong visual and audio hooks.

5 hook lines you could use

1. The enemies-to-lovers trope everyone copies started here.
2. He insulted her at a dance. She never let him forget it.
3. 'It is a truth universally acknowledged…' — and Austen was being sarcastic.
4. Five sisters, one inheritance problem, and a very rude rich man.
5. POV: you misjudged him completely.

Open with one of these on screen in the first second, then cut straight to the story. More on hooks in How to make a book trailer.

3 video ideas for this classic

• Trope-tag trailer: 'enemies to lovers · slow burn · forced proximity · the letter' over Regency images.
• Text-message retelling: the key scenes as a modern group chat, ending with the real quote.
• 'Rank the Bennet sisters' poll video to drive comments.

Make your own version

1. Find the text in our public-domain library or upload your own book.
2. Pick the number of episodes and let the AI plan the series.
3. Watch the free 1-episode preview, then download or share.

Writing your own book in a similar genre? See Historical Romance book trailers, Romance book trailers, Romantic Comedy book trailers, or BookTok video ideas by genre.

More classics