Ethan B. Holland

Each week, I organize about 500 AI headlines into approximately 40 categories. In an effort to push myself to learn, I try to automate the creation of category covers. Here is my current process:

1. Explain the plan to Claude in clear steps, so I can reuse the conversation each week.

Here are the prompts I use (only pasting mine, not Claude’s replies). These stay the same every week.

I’d like your help with writing a prompt for an image creation API. I have a rubric to share with you as well as categories to apply the rubric. Can we work together and have some fun?

Let’s start with the categories so you have them. Can I paste them here?

Agents Amazon Anthropic Apple AGI Audio ARVR Autonomous Business Chips Consumer DeepSeek Education Ethics Figure Google Images Inflection International Llama Local Meta Microsoft Mistral Mobile Multimodality NVIDIA OpenAI OpenSource Perplexity OpEds Publishing Qwen RAG Robots SSI Science Video Twitter TechEdit

By doing it this way, I can go back into the conversation and update it at any point without having to start over… almost like saving my place in a video game.

Fantastic. I have a newsletter with those categories.  As you can tell, each category is related to artificial intelligence or technology.  I would like to make images for each category.  My goal is to start with a theme and then use the category name to customize the theme to creatively reflect the category. Finally, the category name will be written across the image as a title. Ideogram is great at generating complex scenes as well as adding text.    So for each of these categories that I gave you, you’d make a prompt to help me achieve this.   I have a template to use because I have a python script that uses the API.   Note that the API includes the aspect ration.  No need to include it in your prompt.   Here’s the template: CATEGORYNAME |  prompt CATEGORYNAME |  prompt CATEGORYNAME |  prompt Where CATEGORYNAME is the category and the prompt is the prompt.  Each is on one line with no extra lines between them.  I put this into a text file. Make sense?  If so, let me know and I’ll give you a theme to use.

2) Give Claude the specifics for the current week’s theme.

This is the part that changes each week. Everything above stays the same.

First, I prime the system with an overview of what we’re doing. I don’t have to be too precise with how I speak to Claude… it figures it out.

This weeks theme is going to be spray paint stencil street art. I’m gonna give you a fairly detailed description of a piece of street art. I’d like you to use that description as the foundation for each of your category themes. If this sounds good, I will share the base description that you can use to be the foundation of each category. Keep in mind the base description includes a man throwing a laptop computer, but you’ll want to change that in any way you wish depending on the category. I want you to be inspired and creative and capture the feeling of street stencil art as it would embody the sense of satire and conflict and emotions in a public statement about technology and its impact on society? Is it OK for me to share the core description with you now?

3) Build the reference and description that Claude will use to iterate through the unique category covers.

The category images are always derived from the main newsletter cover image. This week’s cover referenced one of the biggest stories of the year that happened this week: OpenAI’s new controversial image-generation tool, which sparked an uproar about copyright theft and AI ethics.

I figured a fitting artist style to reference would be Banksy. I asked the GPT-4o image tool to recreate The Flower Thrower, but with the flowers replaced by a laptop to symbolize technological disruption.

As irony would have it, GPT-4o refused to make the image due to copyright concerns. So, I gave GPT the original image and simply asked it to describe it for me in great detail (will share that further below).

Then, I started a new chat, pasted the description, and asked it to change the details to include a laptop computer and add my newsletter title. I fed that modified description to GPT-4o, and the system pretty much nailed it on the first try.

Here’s the image ChatGPT-4o Imagen created:

Now I have a rather long description I can use to generate images in that style without showing the original Banksy image to Claude.

4) Share the reference description and ask Claude to create unique prompts for all 40 AI categories.

Notice how I first give a specific bit of direction to guide Claude.

Here is the base concept for the image prompts you will generate. Be sure to fully describe your image without assuming that the image creation tool knows anything about this description. So don’t reference a laptop if it’s not going be in your prompt. Rather create a new composition in your mind and then describe it fully. The image generation tool will not seen this text.

This image depicts a piece of street art. The artwork is painted on a distressed, beige-colored concrete wall, with visible signs of age, including cracks, stains, and areas where the paint is peeling off. The central figure is a black-and-white stencil of a man poised in a throwing motion, as if he is about to hurl something like a Molotov cocktail or a stone. However, instead of a weapon, he is holding a laptop computer, which adds a powerful contrast to the otherwise monochromatic and aggressive pose. Key Details: The Figure: Dressed in casual, urban attire, including a cap, bandana covering the lower half of the face, and loose-fitting clothing. The figure’s stance is dynamic, with one arm stretched backward holding the laptop computer and the other arm extended forward as if preparing to throw. The clothing is mostly black, painted with rough, streaky strokes, giving the image a gritty and urgent feel. The Laptop Computer: The laptop is rendered in metallic tones with minimal detail, emphasizing its modernity against the otherwise monochromatic figure and wall. The device is held delicately by the figure’s hand, almost tenderly, contradicting the aggressive throwing gesture. Artistic Style: Stencil Technique: The artwork uses a stencil technique, emphasizing strong contrast and clean lines. Distressed Surface: The wear and tear of the wall itself adds a sense of authenticity and urban decay, enhancing the rebellious or counter-cultural message. Concept & Message: The juxtaposition of violence (the throwing pose) with technology (the laptop computer) is a striking metaphor, commonly interpreted as a critique of modernity, technology’s power, or the spread of information. The piece plays with imagery associated with riots or violent protests but subverts it by replacing a destructive object with a symbol of knowledge, communication, or influence. Surrounding Context: The rough texture of the wall suggests the artwork was created in a public or outdoor setting, likely intended for broad public visibility. The faded and damaged appearance of the paint adds a layer of impermanence, which is typical of street art meant to provoke thought before it inevitably decays or gets removed. Additional Detail: Spray-painted in black stencil is the category name. This text appears hastily applied, adding to the rebellious or underground aesthetic of the artwork.

5) Claude generates a text file with the prompts.

This is the step where Claude gets creative (or not)… and I have to trust the process.

Agents | street art stencil on weathered concrete wall depicting a silhouette figure in urban attire with bandana mask, controlling puppet strings attached to human-shaped shadows, spray painted in high contrast black and white with the word "AGENTS" stenciled boldly across the top, paint drips and urban decay visible in background
Amazon | street art stencil on cracked beige wall showing a figure in hoodie and face covering balancing precariously atop a tower of stacked cardboard boxes with corporate smile logos, shipping labels raining down around them, "AMAZON" text spray painted in dripping black letters above the scene
Anthropic | street art stencil on aged concrete wall featuring a silhouette figure with bandana mask kneeling before a glowing, circular mandala design with a human profile embedded within mechanical patterns, "ANTHROPIC" text stenciled in sharp, angular letters across the bottom of the composition
Apple | street art stencil on peeling concrete wall depicting a figure in urban clothing biting into a glowing apple with circuit board patterns inside, digital code streaming from the bite mark, "APPLE" text spray painted in clean, minimalist letters that contrast with the rough wall texture
AGI | street art stencil on weathered wall showing silhouette figure with covered face removing their own face to reveal a grid-like mechanical structure beneath, surrounded by binary code floating in the air, "AGI" stenciled in large, bold letters that appear to be breaking apart into smaller fragments
Audio | street art stencil on distressed concrete depicting a figure in urban clothing with face covering whose head is transforming into a massive speaker, sound waves visibly emanating outward in black paint, "AUDIO" text spray painted with a vibrating, wave-like pattern across the wall
ARVR | street art stencil on crumbling wall showing a silhouette figure wearing a headset with one foot in a detailed, colorful reality and one in a monochromatic, stenciled world, "ARVR" text split in half with "AR" in structured letters and "VR" in flowing, dream-like font
Autonomous | street art stencil on aged concrete wall depicting a figure in urban attire with bandana cutting their own puppet strings, standing amid empty vehicles moving without drivers, "AUTONOMOUS" text spray painted in mechanical, blocky letters across the top
Business | street art stencil on weathered wall showing silhouette figure in suit and bandana mask balancing on a tightrope made of stock market charts, carrying briefcases in both hands, "BUSINESS" text stenciled in currency-note style lettering above the scene
Chips | street art stencil on cracked wall depicting a figure in urban clothing placing circuit boards into their own brain, electrical sparks emanating from their eyes, "CHIPS" text spray painted in pixelated, computer-style font that appears to be processing
Consumer | street art stencil on peeling wall showing silhouette figure being pulled by shopping carts chained to their limbs, surrounded by barcodes and price tags, "CONSUMER" text stenciled in receipt-style font that fades toward the bottom
DeepSeek | street art stencil on weathered concrete wall featuring a figure in urban clothing with face covering diving headfirst into a spiral vortex painted on the ground, ripples expanding outward, "DEEPSEEK" text spray painted in letters that get progressively deeper into the wall
Education | street art stencil on aged wall showing a silhouette figure with bandana mask opening their head like a book, releasing floating graduation caps and lightbulbs, "EDUCATION" text stenciled in chalk-like lettering that appears to be teaching itself to form
Ethics | street art stencil on crumbling wall depicting a figure in urban attire balanced on a massive scale weighing a human heart against a computer processor, "ETHICS" text spray painted in half-mechanical, half-organic lettering across the center
Figure | street art stencil on concrete wall showing a silhouette human outline breaking apart into robotic components, with mechanical joints and human features blended together, "FIGURE" text stenciled with letters that morph from human to machine forms
Google | street art stencil on weathered wall depicting a figure in urban clothing with face covering looking through a magnifying glass that shows the world as searchable data points, "GOOGLE" text spray painted in the style of their logo but dripping and distorted
Images | street art stencil on aged concrete wall showing silhouette figure trapped inside a polaroid frame trying to break out, surrounded by cascading picture frames, "IMAGES" text stenciled in photographic negative style lettering that appears exposed to light
Inflection | street art stencil on cracked wall depicting a figure in urban attire at a forked path with one path rising sharply upward and the other downward, standing at the exact inflection point, "INFLECTION" text spray painted in curved letters that peak in the middle
International | street art stencil on peeling concrete wall showing a silhouette figure juggling globe sections that form a complete Earth when aligned, surrounded by flag fragments, "INTERNATIONAL" text stenciled in multiple script styles representing different languages
Llama | street art stencil on weathered wall depicting a figure in urban clothing with bandana riding a llama that's partially transformed into computer code, digital wool floating off in the wind, "LLAMA" text spray painted in fluffy letters that morph into binary at the edges
Local | street art stencil on crumbling concrete wall showing a silhouette figure planting a flag in a detailed map of a neighborhood, roots growing from the flag into the community, "LOCAL" text stenciled in letters that appear to be made from street signs and local landmarks
Meta | street art stencil on aged wall depicting a figure in urban attire walking through a doorway that leads into a mirror reflecting infinite doorways, creating a recursive loop, "META" text spray painted in reflective letters that seem to contain miniature versions of themselves
Microsoft | street art stencil on distressed concrete wall featuring a silhouette figure with face covering looking out a four-paned window that casts grid-like shadows across the scene, "MICROSOFT" text stenciled in clean, corporate letters being broken by wild, organic growth
Mistral | street art stencil on cracked wall showing a figure in urban clothing being swept up by swirling wind patterns that transform into data flows and code fragments, "MISTRAL" text spray painted in windswept letters that trail off to the right
Mobile | street art stencil on weathered concrete wall depicting a silhouette figure with their limbs being pulled in different directions by smartphone chains, "MOBILE" text stenciled in letters that appear to be sliding notifications across the composition
Multimodality | street art stencil on peeling wall showing a figure in urban attire with bandana mask with multiple arms, each interacting with different media forms - text, audio waves, images, video frames, "MULTIMODALITY" text spray painted in varying styles for each syllable
NVIDIA | street art stencil on aged concrete wall featuring a silhouette figure mining glowing green cubes from the wall itself, streams of light connecting the cubes in a network pattern, "NVIDIA" text stenciled in sharp, angular letters that glow with internal light
OpenAI | street art stencil on crumbling wall depicting a figure in urban clothing unlocking a cage, releasing dove-shaped algorithms that transform as they fly away, "OPENAI" text spray painted in letters that start confined and become more expansive and open
OpenSource | street art stencil on weathered wall showing a silhouette figure with face covering distributing pieces of code to outstretched hands emerging from the wall edges, "OPENSOURCE" text stenciled in letters formed from puzzle pieces that fit together
Perplexity | street art stencil on distressed concrete wall featuring a figure in urban attire with their head transformed into a labyrinth or maze with multiple pathways, question marks floating around, "PERPLEXITY" text spray painted in letters that seem to question their own formation
OpEds | street art stencil on peeling wall depicting a silhouette figure with bandana mask balancing newspaper columns on a scale, ink dripping from their fingertips onto blank pages below, "OPEDS" text stenciled in editorial header font being redacted in places
Publishing | street art stencil on cracked concrete wall showing a figure in urban clothing releasing books with wings from a printing press, pages flying like birds, "PUBLISHING" text spray painted in typewriter-style letters that appear to be arranging themselves
Qwen | street art stencil on aged wall featuring a silhouette figure with face covering holding up ancient Chinese oracle bones that transform into modern keyboards at the edges, "QWEN" text stenciled in letters that blend calligraphy with digital display styles
RAG | street art stencil on weathered wall depicting a figure in urban attire stitching together torn document fragments into a patchwork knowledge quilt, "RAG" text spray painted in letters that appear to be constructed from different font styles and sources
Robots | street art stencil on peeling concrete wall showing a silhouette figure and robot silhouette mirroring each other's movements with matching body language, "ROBOTS" text stenciled in mechanical letters that have joints and articulation points
SSI | street art stencil on crumbling wall featuring a figure in urban clothing with bandana mask holding multiple ID cards connected by a single digital chain to their finger, "SSI" text spray painted in letters that appear to be verifying their own authenticity
Science | street art stencil on aged concrete wall depicting a silhouette figure mixing molecular structures in beakers that overflow with formulas and equations, "SCIENCE" text stenciled in letters that incorporate scientific symbols and notation
Video | street art stencil on weathered wall showing a figure in urban attire trapped inside a film strip that wraps around their body like a snake, frame by frame showing different poses, "VIDEO" text spray painted in letters that appear to be buffering or loading
Twitter | street art stencil on distressed concrete wall featuring a silhouette figure with face covering releasing a flock of birds that transform into message bubbles as they fly upward, "TWITTER" text stenciled in letters that appear to be composed of short messages
Tech | street art stencil on cracked wall depicting a figure in urban clothing with one half human and one half digital, the transformation occurring across their body in pixel-by-pixel conversion, "TECH" text spray painted in letters that begin as handwritten and end as computer font

6) Run the script to send to the Flux API and generate the images

I take the text block from Claude and save it as a reference .txt file on my local drive.

The Python code is a completely turnkey system from here on out. I use the same script every week to run the prompts .txt file.

All I have to do now is type
python3 flux-python-script.py
into the command line, and the script generates and saves the images to my laptop.

I won’t paste the entire Python script here, however, this is an overview of what the script does on my behalf:

1. Imports & Setup:
   • Imports necessary libraries (fal_client, os, time, datetime, requests) for interacting with the FAL API, managing files, and handling dates and HTTP requests.
2. Defines Valid Categories:
   • Lists all acceptable categories for prompts to ensure the script only processes recognized categories.
3. API Key Handling:
   • Prompts the user to enter their FAL.ai API key and stores it as an environment variable (FAL_KEY) for use in API requests.
4. Date Input:
   • Asks the user to input a date in the format YYYY-MM-DD and validates the format.
5. Prompt Parsing:
   • Reads a text file called flux-prompts.txt and extracts category-prompt pairs.
   • Lines must be formatted as: category | prompt.
   • Alerts the user if unrecognized categories or formatting issues are detected.
6. Image Generation Request:
   • Submits each prompt to the FAL API for image generation.
   • Requests four images for each prompt, with specific dimensions (1024×576) and format (png).
7. Downloading Images:
   • Saves generated images locally under a directory called generated_images.
   • Filenames include the category, prompt index, date, and image number (e.g., apple01-2025-03-29_1.png).
8. Retry Mechanism:
   • Automatically retries up to three times if an image generation request fails.
9. Handling Multiple Prompts:
   • Processes all prompts from the flux-prompts.txt file, generating and saving images for each.
   • Adds a slight delay between requests to avoid overloading the API.
10. Completion Message:

• Displays a final message once all image generations are completed.

Here is an example of Claude coming up with a solid prompt, but Flux Pro didn’t execute it well. It’s too clean-looking. Still, the idea is great. My explainer (see link in the comments) shows just how little guidance Claude and Flux need to get started.

“street art stencil on crumbling wall depicting a figure in urban attire balanced on a massive scale weighing a human heart against a computer processor, “ETHICS” text spray painted in half-mechanical, half-organic lettering across the center”

7) Another script then processes the images for posting to WordPress.

I can share that in another post.
Here are the results from the process I just described: