PROMPT GUIDE

How to Use NovelAI Inpaint (Redraw Just One Part)

NovelAI inpaint lets you select just the part of a finished picture that bothers you with a mask and redraw only that area. It helps when you like the whole picture but a hand broke, or when you only want to change the expression. This guide explains painting the mask, what to write in the prompt, and how to choose strength, in order.

Last updated: 2026-10-22 approx. 3 min read

日本語版

The short answer

NovelAI inpaint redraws a masked area using a prompt that describes only what you want in that area. Paint the mask a little wider than needed and start with low strength to keep seams from showing. Screen names and settings change between versions, so check the official guide.

What is NovelAI inpaint, and what can it do?

It selects part of a finished picture with a mask and redraws only that part.

If you redo the whole picture, even the composition and face you liked can change. With inpaint, only the area you want fixed is remade and everything else stays as it is. It suits fixing the shape of a hand, an expression, a held object, or a small object in the background. Screen names and setting items can change between versions, so check the official guide for the actual screen.

What to fix	How to paint the mask	What to write in the prompt
Shape of a hand	A little wider around the hand and fingers	hand, five fingers and so on. If she holds something, holding cup
Expression	The center of the face, including eyes, brows and mouth	Only the expression, such as smile or closed mouth
Ends of the hair	The hair tips and the area around them	Hair color and length (long hair and so on)
Object in the background	The object you want to remove and its surroundings	A description of the background (blue sky, wall and so on)
Clothing color	The whole area of the clothing	Color plus clothing (white dress and so on)

Anime girl in a school uniform smiling, an example of an original image before inpainting — 直す前の元の絵

The same composition with a surprised expression, an example of changing only the expression — 直す前の元の絵

Illustration usage rules

What are the steps for NovelAI inpaint?

Steps for fixing just one part

Choose the picture you want to fix and open the inpaint screen
Paint the area you want to fix with the brush (make the edge a little wide)
Rewrite the prompt so it contains only what you want drawn in the painted area
Set the strength low and make one image first
If it is not fixed, raise the strength a little or widen the mask and try again
When you like it, save it and check how the whole picture looks

smile, closed mouth, looking at viewer, soft eyes

hand, five fingers, holding a white cup, relaxed hand

Rinka's tips

Keep the prompt to the content of the part you want to fix. If you describe the whole picture, all of it may be squeezed into the painted area
Fix only one place at a time. Fixing a hand and an expression one after the other fails less often than doing both at once
Keep a copy of the original picture before you start so you can redo it

How do you decide the mask range and strength?

Make the range a little wider than the area to fix, start with low strength, and raise it little by little if that is not enough.

Strength	How it changes	Good for fixing
Low	The shape stays almost the same and details are tidied	Fine expression adjustments, messy lines
Medium	The shape changes a lot	Hand shapes, the direction of a held object
High	It changes until it is close to something else	Removing a background object, turning it into something completely different

What the strength numbers mean can differ a little between versions and screens, so do not copy numbers as they are. Try low, then medium, then high, and find the point you like.

What if the seam of the fixed area shows? (Common failures and fixes)

The cause is that the mask range is too narrow, or the prompt does not match the whole picture.

Failure	Cause	Fix
A seam line is visible	The mask fits the area exactly	Widen the edge, and use a blur setting for the boundary if there is one
The color looks out of place	Only the fixed part has a different color	Add the same light or color as the whole picture to the prompt (warm light and so on)
The hand is not fixed	The range is narrow or the strength is low	Paint wider around the hand and set the strength to medium
The face becomes a different person	The strength is too high	Lower the strength and use only expression tags
Extra objects appear	The prompt contains too much description	Keep only what is needed in the painted area

How is it different from img2img?

img2img remakes the whole picture from the original, while inpaint remakes only the range you selected.

When you want to change the mood of the whole picture, remaking the whole picture (img2img and so on) fits
When you want to fix only one part, inpaint fits
With either, it is safer to keep the original picture before you try

For how img2img and inpaint work in Stable Diffusion, see How to Use img2img and Inpaint (Fixing Only Part of an Image) →

For the basic fix when hands break, see How to Fix Bad Hands in AI Art: The Complete Guide →

For fixes when faces break, see Why AI Art Faces Get Distorted and How to Fix Them (Full Body, Distant Shots, Inpaint) →

For the basic NovelAI prompt, see How to Write NovelAI Prompts (Emphasis, Quality Tags, UC) →

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I fix hands with NovelAI inpaint?

Often, yes. Paint a little wide around the hand and fingers and redraw with tags such as hand and five fingers. If one try does not fix it, make several and choose.

How wide should the mask be?

A little wider than the area you want to fix. If you paint it exactly, the seam is more likely to show.

Do I rewrite the whole prompt?

No. Write only what you want drawn in the painted area. If you describe the whole picture, all of it may end up inside the painted area.

How high should the strength be?

Start low and raise it little by little if that is not enough. What the numbers mean may change between versions, so check the official guide.

Does inpainting use up anything?

Pricing and consumption change with your plan and the time. Check the official pricing page before you use it.