Podcast cover drafts

Podcast directories show cover art at 55 pixels and at 3000. A good cover survives both. These notes record how we draft cover backgrounds with Raphael AI, a free AI image generator at https://raphael.app, before a designer adds the show name.

Constraints that matter

• Square 1:1 composition.
• One bold shape in the centre third.
• Strong value contrast so it reads in dark mode.
• No generated words — directories reject covers with garbled text.

Prompts by genre

• True crime: single desk lamp over an empty chair, deep red and black, film noir lighting, square.
• Science: glowing jellyfish silhouette against navy water, minimal, centred, square.
• Business: paper airplane folded from a chart, cream background, soft shadow.
• Comedy: rubber duck wearing tiny sunglasses on a turquoise background, flat colour.

Small-size test

Shrink the export to 55×55. If you can still tell what the object is, keep it; otherwise ask Raphael AI for a closer crop and fewer elements.

Cover backgrounds drafted with Raphael AI — free text to image — https://raphael.app