by Matt Zimmerman
ZimmWriter now integrates with third party APIs to download images and also upload them to your WordPress site if that is linked.
The Pexels API is free and allows you make 200 API requests an hour and 25,000 API calls a month. When enabled, ZimmWriter makes 1 request per blog post.
You can sign up for a Pexels account and get an API key at this signup link.
In addition, the “Save & Verify Pexels API Key” button in ZimmWriter will display your account information with remaining balance and time before your credits refresh.
You won’t see this option in the image API menu because Dalle is an OpenAI model and therefore uses your OpenAI key. So if you don’t want to get Pexels or Stability (below) then you can just use Dalle for images and your OpenAI account will be deducted accordingly. However, Dalle is more expensive than some of the Stability models (discussed below).
Stability is a company that has their own AI image models which are pretty good. Just like OpenAI’s API, the Stability API is also pay as you go. So when you sign up for their API, you’ll need to put some credit in your account to generate images.
At the time of this writing, the pricing is as follows:
ZimmWriter lets you choose between any of these models as it writes your articles.
If you want to get your own API key, then head to https://platform.stability.ai and create an account.
Add some money to your account here https://platform.stability.ai/account/credits (I suggest $10 to get your started).
Get your API key here: https://platform.stability.ai/account/keys
Next, you can add your Stability API key inside the Image API menu in ZimmWriter:
Type your Stability API key in the appropriate box. You can also add some negative keywords, such as “hands, fingers” to help avoid the AI creating those. However, much of the result is dictated by the AI image prompt which you can learn more about to dial in your results for your specific niche.
Now, press the “Save & Verify Stability API Key” to make sure it’s working. ZimmWriter will generate a “stability_image_test.jpg” in your ouput folder if it is a success.
Finally, you can always test the API status by clicking that Live Status link. Sometimes their API goes down so it’s good to know what’s happening.
Bulk and SEO Writer – If you check the “Enable Image API” box then ZimmWriter will contact the Pexels API and try to find the best image.
Penny Arcade – In general, it works just like the Bulk and SEO Writer. However, if a Scraping Surgeon domain is detected then any image downloaded by Scraping Surgeon takes precedence and will be used as the featured image. In that situation, ZimmWriter will not contact Pexels API.
Sometimes the images ZimmWriter finds might be irrelevant (or even offensive). ZimmWriter simply performs a keyword search based on your article and retrieves whatever the API service provides. As always, it is imperative to check the results before publishing. In addition, obeying and following any and all copyright laws is your responsibly.
The information provided on this website is provided for entertainment purposes only. I make no representations or warranties of any kind, expressed or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, adequacy, legality, usefulness, reliability, suitability, or availability of the information, or about anything else. Any reliance you place on the information is therefore strictly at your own risk. Read more in my terms of use and privacy policy. You can also contact me with questions.