How to Create Relaxing Sleep Story Videos Like Sleepless Historian
If you’ve ever watched channels like Sleepless Historian or Historian Sleepy, you know how powerful the sleep storytelling niche can be. Their calm, slow-paced visuals paired with soothing narration help millions of people wind down at night. And here’s the exciting part—you can create this exact type of content yourself using AI tools.
In this guide, I’ll walk you step by step through the process of making your own sleep story videos: from scripting and voiceovers to visuals and automation. By the end, you’ll know how to produce professional-quality videos that people love to watch before bed—and that you can turn into a sustainable YouTube channel.
Why the Sleep Storytelling Niche Works
Here’s something most people overlook: timing and audience demand. Around 10:30 p.m., a massive audience is looking for calming, sleep-friendly content. And yet, very few new videos are uploaded at that time. That gap in supply is exactly how Sleepless Historian went viral.
It’s a classic case of high demand, low competition. Add to that the evergreen appeal of history and culture, and you’ve got a niche that is both replicable and rewarding.
Step 1: Writing a Script with ChatGPT
A great video starts with a script. In this niche, your narration needs to feel slow, calming, and sleep-friendly. No drama, no tension—just soft, engaging storytelling.
Here’s a sample prompt you can use with ChatGPT:
“Generate calm, slow-paced historical topics for a sleep-inducing narration. Focus on peaceful daily life, gentle cultural practices, architecture, or trade. Avoid violence, politics, or fast-paced events.”
From that list, you might get themes like “A Day in the Life of a Farmer in Ancient Egypt” or “Evening Routines in Ancient Japan.” Pick one that feels soothing and easy to narrate.
Next, refine it into a 600–800 word script using a second prompt:
“Write a monotone, sleep-friendly narration with a calm and gentle tone. Include an intro, body, and soft closing.”
This ensures the script is structured for relaxation. Always review and tweak before using it in your video.
Step 2: Creating a Soothing Voiceover
Once your script is ready, it’s time to turn it into narration. For this, 11 Labs is an excellent tool.
Here’s how to get the perfect sleep-story voice:
- Filter voices by English → Narrative & Story.
- Test both male and female options (sometimes a different gender helps you stand out from competitors).
- Good voice choices include RJ Zane (steady), Rego Vilbix (meditative), and Mellow Mat (calm, casual).
For the settings:
- Voice speed → 0.95 (slightly slower, perfect for sleep).
- Style exaggeration → around 5% (adds warmth without being distracting).
And that’s it—you’ve got a professional, soothing narration ready for your video.
Step 3: Generating Images with AI
The visuals are just as important as the narration. For this niche, you’ll want deep purples, muted blues, and calming tones.
Use a prompt like this in ChatGPT:
“Generate 10 prompts for sleep-friendly historical images. Style: calm, cinematic, minimal movement, deep purple/blue tones, peaceful atmosphere.”
Then paste those prompts into your favorite image generation tool. You’ll get visuals that perfectly match your script’s tone.
Pro tip: Before each image request, add “Please create a landscape image” to ensure YouTube-friendly formatting.
Step 4: Turning Images Into Video
For creating smooth, sleep-friendly videos, I recommend Cling AI. You don’t need dozens of clips—just a few well-chosen visuals combined with voiceover and gentle background music.
Here’s the workflow:
- Upload your best images.
- Use a prompt like “Create a peaceful, sleep-support video with minimal motion.”
- Start with short 5-second clips to test quality before moving to 10-second clips.
This keeps the visuals calm, avoids distortion, and ensures a consistent style.
Step 5: Editing and Final Touches
Editing for this type of content is refreshingly simple:
- Add your voiceover as the main track.
- Layer in soft background music to enhance relaxation.
- Keep cuts slow, transitions minimal, and visuals consistent.
For thumbnails, use high-contrast but calming visuals (deep blues, stars, or quiet landscapes). Tools like Canva make this quick.
Why This Strategy Works
Unlike other niches, sleep storytelling is not about speed or hype. It’s about consistency and atmosphere. When people find a channel that helps them relax night after night, they come back daily. That kind of loyalty drives views, watch time, and eventually higher RPMs.
And with the system I’ve outlined—scriptwriting, AI narration, image generation, and Cling AI for motion—you can replicate the Sleepless Historian model with very little cost or complexity.
Final Thoughts
The sleep storytelling niche is one of the easiest ways to start a faceless YouTube channel today. By combining AI scripting, soothing voiceovers, calming visuals, and smart automation, you can create content that people not only watch but rely on as part of their nightly routine.
With practice, you can scale this into a side hustle—or even a full-time YouTube business.
So if you’ve been waiting for the right opportunity to start, this is it. The audience is there. The demand is high. And now you’ve got the step-by-step system to create your first video.