Cover Image Generator

Cover Image Generator

Generate elegant cover images for articles with multiple style options.

Usage

# Auto-select style and aspect based on content
/​baoyu-cover-image path/​to/​article.md

# Specify style
/​baoyu-cover-image article.md --style blueprint

# Specify aspect ratio
/​baoyu-cover-image article.md --aspect 16:9

# Visual only (no title text)
/​baoyu-cover-image article.md --no-title

# Direct content input
/​baoyu-cover-image
[paste content]

# Direct input with options
/​baoyu-cover-image --style notion --aspect 1:1
[paste content]

Options

Two Dimensions

Type × Style can be freely combined. Example: --type conceptual --style blueprint creates technical concept visualization with schematic aesthetics.

Type Gallery

Auto Type Selection

When --type is omitted, select based on content signals:

Style Gallery

Style definitions: references/​styles/

Type × Style Compatibility

✓✓ = highly recommended | ✓ = compatible | ✗ = not recommended

Auto Style Selection

When --style is omitted, select based on content signals:

File Structure

Each session creates an independent directory named by content slug:

cover-image/​{topic-slug}/
├── source-{slug}.{ext}    # Source files (text, images, etc.)
├── prompts/​cover.md       # Generation prompt
└── cover.png              # Output image

Slug Generation:

1. Extract main topic from content (2-4 words, kebab-case)
2. Example: "The Future of AI" → future-of-ai

Conflict Resolution: If cover-image/​{topic-slug}/ already exists:

• Append timestamp: {topic-slug}-YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS
• Example: ai-future exists → ai-future-20260118-143052

Source Files: Copy all sources with naming source-{slug}.{ext}:

• source-article.md, source-reference.png, etc.
• Multiple sources supported: text, images, files from conversation

Workflow

Progress Checklist

Copy and track progress:

Cover Image Progress:
- [ ] Step 0: Check preferences (EXTEND.md) ⚠️ REQUIRED if not found
- [ ] Step 1: Analyze content
- [ ] Step 2: Confirm options (type + style + aspect) ⚠️ REQUIRED
- [ ] Step 3: Create prompt
- [ ] Step 4: Generate image
- [ ] Step 5: Completion report

Flow

Input → [Step 0: Preferences/​Setup] → Analyze → [Confirm: Type + Style + Aspect] → Prompt → Generate → Complete

Step 0: Load Preferences (EXTEND.md) ⚠️

Purpose: Load user preferences or run first-time setup. Do NOT skip setup if EXTEND.md not found.

Use Bash to check EXTEND.md existence (priority order):

# Check project-level first
test -f .baoyu-skills/​baoyu-cover-image/​EXTEND.md && echo "project"

# Then user-level (cross-platform: $HOME works on macOS/​Linux/​WSL)
test -f "$HOME/​.baoyu-skills/​baoyu-cover-image/​EXTEND.md" && echo "user"

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────┬───────────────────┐ │ Path │ Location │ ├──────────────────────────────────────────────────┼───────────────────┤ │ .baoyu-skills/​baoyu-cover-image/​EXTEND.md │ Project directory │ ├──────────────────────────────────────────────────┼───────────────────┤ │ $HOME/​.baoyu-skills/​baoyu-cover-image/​EXTEND.md │ User home │ └──────────────────────────────────────────────────┴───────────────────┘

┌───────────┬───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ Result │ Action │ ├───────────┼───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Found │ Read, parse, display preferences summary (see below) → Continue to Step 1 │ ├───────────┼───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Not found │ ⚠️ MUST run first-time setup (see below) → Then continue to Step 1 │ └───────────┴───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Preferences Summary (when EXTEND.md found):

Display loaded preferences:

Preferences loaded from [project/​user]:
• Watermark: [enabled/​disabled] [content if enabled]
• Type: [preferred_type or "auto"]
• Style: [preferred_style or "auto"]
• Aspect: [default_aspect]
• Language: [language or "auto"]

First-Time Setup (when EXTEND.md not found):

Language: Use user's input language or saved language preference.

Use AskUserQuestion with ALL questions in ONE call:

Q1: Watermark

header: "Watermark"
question: "Watermark text for generated cover images?"
options:
  - label: "No watermark (Recommended)"
    description: "Clean covers, can enable later in EXTEND.md"

Q2: Preferred Type

header: "Type"
question: "Default cover type preference?"
options:
  - label: "Auto-select (Recommended)"
    description: "Choose based on content analysis each time"
  - label: "hero"
    description: "Large visual impact - product launch, announcements"
  - label: "conceptual"
    description: "Concept visualization - technical, architecture"

Q3: Preferred Style

header: "Style"
question: "Default cover style preference?"
options:
  - label: "Auto-select (Recommended)"
    description: "Choose based on content analysis each time"
  - label: "elegant"
    description: "Refined, sophisticated - professional business"
  - label: "notion"
    description: "SaaS dashboard - productivity/​tech content"

Q4: Default Aspect Ratio

header: "Aspect"
question: "Default aspect ratio for cover images?"
options:
  - label: "2.35:1 (Recommended)"
    description: "Cinematic widescreen, best for article headers"
  - label: "16:9"
    description: "Standard widescreen, versatile"
  - label: "1:1"
    description: "Square, social media friendly"

Q5: Save Location

header: "Save"
question: "Where to save preferences?"
options:
  - label: "Project (Recommended)"
    description: ".baoyu-skills/ (this project only)"
  - label: "User"
    description: "~/​.baoyu-skills/ (all projects)"

After setup: Create EXTEND.md with user choices, then continue to Step 1.

Full setup details: references/​config/​first-time-setup.md

EXTEND.md Supports: Watermark | Preferred type | Preferred style | Default aspect ratio | Custom style definitions | Language preference

Schema: references/​config/​preferences-schema.md

Step 1: Analyze Content

Read source content, save it if needed, and perform analysis.

Actions:

1. Save source content (if not already a file):
   • If user provides a file path: use as-is
   • If user pastes content: save to source.md in target directory
2. Read source content
3. Content analysis:
   • Extract: topic, core message, tone, keywords
   • Identify visual metaphor opportunities
   • Detect content type (technical/​personal/​business/​creative)
4. Language detection:
   • Detect source content language
   • Note user's input language (from conversation)
   • Compare with language preference in EXTEND.md

Step 2: Confirm Options ⚠️

Purpose: Validate type, style and aspect ratio. Do NOT skip.

Language: Auto-determined (user's input language > saved preference > source language). No need to ask.

Present options using AskUserQuestion:

Question 1: Type (if not specified via --type)

• Show recommended type based on content analysis + preferred type from EXTEND.md

header: "Type"
question: "Which cover type?"
multiSelect: false
options:
  - label: "[auto-recommended type] (Recommended)"
    description: "[reason based on content signals]"
  - label: "hero"
    description: "Large visual impact, title overlay - product launch, announcements"
  - label: "conceptual"
    description: "Concept visualization - technical, architecture"
  - label: "typography"
    description: "Text-focused layout - opinions, quotes"

Question 2: Style (if not specified via --style)

• Based on selected Type, show compatible styles (✓✓ first from compatibility matrix)
• Format: [style name] - [why it fits this content]

header: "Style"
question: "Which cover style?"
multiSelect: false
options:
  - label: "[best compatible style] (Recommended)"
    description: "[reason based on type + content]"
  - label: "[style2]"
    description: "[reason]"
  - label: "[style3]"
    description: "[reason]"

Question 3: Aspect Ratio (if not specified via --aspect)

header: "Aspect"
question: "Cover aspect ratio?"
multiSelect: false
options:
  - label: "2.35:1 (Recommended)"
    description: "Cinematic widescreen, best for article headers"
  - label: "16:9"
    description: "Standard widescreen, versatile"
  - label: "1:1"
    description: "Square, social media friendly"

After response: Proceed to Step 3 with confirmed type + style + aspect ratio.

Step 3: Create Prompt

Save to prompts/​cover.md:

Cover theme: [2-3 words]
Type: [confirmed type]
Style: [confirmed style]
Aspect ratio: [confirmed ratio]
Title text: [max 8 chars, or "none" if --no-title]
Language: [confirmed language]

Type composition:
- [Type-specific layout and structure]

Visual composition:
- Main visual: [type + style appropriate metaphor]
- Layout: [positioning based on type and aspect ratio]
- Decorative: [style elements]

Color scheme: [primary, background, accent from style]
Type notes: [key characteristics from type definition]
Style notes: [key characteristics from style definition]

[Watermark section if enabled]

Type-Specific Composition:

Title guidelines (if included):

• Max 8 characters, punchy headline
• Use hooks: numbers, questions, contrasts
• Match confirmed language

Watermark Application (if enabled in preferences): Add to prompt:

Include a subtle watermark "[content]" positioned at [position]
with approximately [opacity*100]% visibility. The watermark should
be legible but not distracting from the main content.

Reference: references/​config/​watermark-guide.md

Step 4: Generate Image

Image Generation Skill Selection:

1. Check available image generation skills
2. If multiple skills available, ask user preference
3. Call selected skill with:
   • Prompt file path
   • Output image path: cover.png
   • Aspect ratio parameter

On failure: Auto-retry once before reporting error.

Step 5: Completion Report

Cover Generated!

Topic: [topic]
Type: [type name]
Style: [style name]
Aspect: [ratio]
Title: [title or "visual only"]
Language: [lang]
Watermark: [enabled/​disabled]
Location: [directory path]

Files:
✓ source-{slug}.{ext}
✓ prompts/​cover.md
✓ cover.png

Image Modification

Notes

• Cover must be readable at small preview sizes
• Visual metaphors > literal representations
• Title: max 8 chars, readable, impactful
• Two confirmation points: Step 0 (first-time setup if no EXTEND.md) + Step 2 (options) - do NOT skip
• Use confirmed language for title text
• Maintain watermark consistency if enabled
• Check Type × Style compatibility matrix when selecting combinations

References

Styles: references/​styles/<name>.md - Style definitions

Config:

• references/​config/​preferences-schema.md - EXTEND.md schema
• references/​config/​first-time-setup.md - First-time setup flow
• references/​config/​watermark-guide.md - Watermark configuration

Extension Support

Custom configurations via EXTEND.md. See Step 0 for paths and supported options.