Automate Hand‑Drawn Doodle Xiaohongshu Covers Using n8n

Overview

The article demonstrates how to turn the repetitive task of designing Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book) cover images into an automated pipeline using n8n and AI image generation services.

Preparation

1. Volcano Engine Setup

Register a Volcano Engine account and enable the Jimeng (即梦) API.

Open the Jimeng AI service page, complete real‑name verification if required, and select the free trial to obtain a 200‑image quota.

Navigate to API Key Management and create a new API key; copy the key for later use.

2. Zhipu (智普) Model Setup

Visit the Zhipu platform via the invitation link

https://www.bigmodel.cn/invite?icode=W9yFaYPm769Hiu%2BWVbk3bv2gad6AKpjZefIo3dVEQyA%3D

and claim a 20‑million‑token free trial.

Create an API key in the console and note the key for n8n.

Building the n8n Workflow

Node 1 – Chat Message Trigger

Create a new workflow and add a Chat Message trigger node to receive the user‑entered cover theme.

Node 2 – Prompt Generation

Add an AI Agent node, select the OpenAI model (or compatible endpoint), and configure credentials with the previously obtained API key and base URL. Set the system prompt to a hand‑drawn doodle style (the full prompt is omitted for brevity) and enable the output format option.

Node 3 – Image Generation (HTTP)

Add an HTTP node, set Method to POST and URL to the Jimeng image generation endpoint. Include the API key in the headers and supply a JSON body:

{
  "model": "doubao-seedream-4-0-250828",
  "prompt": {{ $json.output.prompt.toJsonString() }},
  "sequential_image_generation": "disabled",
  "response_format": "url",
  "size": "1773x2364",
  "stream": false,
  "watermark": false
}

Node 4 – Image Download

Add another HTTP node to download the generated image. Set URL to the image URL returned by the previous node, enable Response format as File, and configure the response option.

Running the Workflow

Execute the workflow; the system reads the user‑provided theme, generates a prompt, calls the AI model, receives an image URL, and automatically downloads the file. The final cover image can be saved locally and uploaded to Xiaohongshu.

Conclusion

With this n8n pipeline, you now have a personal, on‑demand cover‑design production line: simply launch the workflow, input a topic, and receive a high‑quality, hand‑drawn style cover ready for upload.