YouTube to Ebook#

Transform YouTube videos from your favorite channels into well-written magazine-style articles, delivered as an EPUB ebook.

What This Skill Does#

1. Fetches latest videos from YouTube channels (filtering out Shorts)
2. Extracts transcripts from those videos
3. Transforms transcripts into polished articles using Claude
4. Packages articles into an EPUB ebook for reading on any device

Quick Start#

Ask: "Set up YouTube to ebook for me"

I'll guide you through:

1. Creating a project folder
2. Setting up YouTube API access
3. Configuring your favorite channels
4. Generating your first ebook

Requirements#

• Python 3.8+
• YouTube Data API key (free from Google Cloud Console)
• Anthropic API key (for Claude)

Commands#

CommandDescriptionpython main.pyGenerate ebook from latest videospython main.py --channelsEdit channel listpython dashboard.pyLaunch web dashboard

Key Files#

text

youtube-newsletter/
├── get_videos.py      # Fetch latest videos
├── get_transcripts.py # Extract transcripts
├── write_articles.py  # Transform to articles
├── send_email.py      # Create EPUB & send
├── main.py            # Run full pipeline
├── channels.txt       # Your channel list
└── .env               # API keys

Known Pitfalls & Solutions#

1. YouTube Shorts Detection#

Problem: Filtering by duration doesn't work—some Shorts are longer than 60 seconds.

Solution: Check if the /shorts/ URL resolves:

python

def is_youtube_short(video_id):
    shorts_url = f"https://www.youtube.com/shorts/{video_id}"
    response = requests.head(shorts_url, allow_redirects=True, timeout=5)
    return "/shorts/" in response.url

2. Videos Not in Chronological Order#

Problem: YouTube Search API doesn't return truly chronological results.

Solution: Use the channel's uploads playlist via playlistItems API:

python

# Get uploads playlist ID from channel
channel_info = youtube.channels().list(
    part="contentDetails",
    forHandle=handle
).execute()
uploads_playlist_id = channel_info["items"][0]["contentDetails"]["relatedPlaylists"]["uploads"]

# Fetch from uploads playlist (always chronological)
youtube.playlistItems().list(
    part="snippet",
    playlistId=uploads_playlist_id,
    maxResults=15
).execute()

3. Transcript API Syntax#

Problem: YouTubeTranscriptApi.get_transcript() no longer works.

Solution: Use instance method:

python

from youtube_transcript_api import YouTubeTranscriptApi

ytt_api = YouTubeTranscriptApi()
transcript = ytt_api.fetch(video_id)

4. Rate Limiting on Transcripts#

Problem: Fetching many transcripts quickly triggers rate limits.

Solution: Add 2-second delays between requests:

python

import time
for video in videos:
    transcript = get_transcript(video["video_id"])
    time.sleep(2)

5. Transcript Accuracy (Names, Terms)#

Problem: Auto-transcripts misspell names and technical terms.

Solution: Include video title and description in Claude's context—these usually have correct spellings.

6. Cloud Automation Blocked#

Problem: GitHub Actions and cloud servers are blocked by YouTube for transcript fetching.

Solution: Run automation locally on your Mac using launchd:

xml

<!-- ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.youtube.ebook.plist -->
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
    <key>Label</key>
    <string>com.youtube.ebook</string>
    <key>ProgramArguments</key>
    <array>
        <string>/usr/bin/python3</string>
        <string>/path/to/main.py</string>
    </array>
    <key>StartCalendarInterval</key>
    <dict>
        <key>Weekday</key>
        <integer>3</integer>
        <key>Hour</key>
        <integer>7</integer>
    </dict>
</dict>
</plist>

Customization#

Writing Style#

Edit the prompt in write_articles.py to change article tone:

• Magazine style (default)
• Academic summary
• Casual blog post
• Technical documentation

Email Delivery (Optional)#

Add Gmail credentials to .env to receive ebooks via email:

text

GMAIL_ADDRESS=your@gmail.com
GMAIL_APP_PASSWORD=your-app-password

Workflow#

text

┌─────────────┐    ┌──────────────┐    ┌───────────────┐    ┌────────────┐
│ Fetch Videos│───▶│Get Transcripts│───▶│Write Articles │───▶│Create EPUB │
│ (YouTube API)│    │(Transcript API)│    │  (Claude AI)  │    │ (ebooklib) │
└─────────────┘    └──────────────┘    └───────────────┘    └────────────┘

Example Output#

The generated EPUB contains:

• Table of contents with all articles
• Clean, readable formatting
• Original video links for reference
• Mobile-friendly styling