Content Guidelines

Ownership of Your Story.

Before posting any content to either one of the StoryPlace platforms, we ask that you read our Content Guidelines. If your content does not comply with these guidelines it may be removed at any time.

You own all the rights to the content you create and post on all Storyplace Services. However don’t submit content you don’t hold the copyright for, unless you have permission, including to grant Storyplace all the rights outlined in these terms.

When you post content to Storyplace, we need the legal permission under applicable copyright laws to display that content to users of the Storyplace Services. Legally this means you give us a nonexclusive license to publish your content on the Storyplace Services, including anything reasonably related to publishing it (like storing, displaying, reformatting, and distributing it), as well as use it for marketing related content (social media, campaigns, PR and newsletters)

You’re responsible for the content you post. This means you assume all risks related to its publication and display, including someone else’s reliance on its accuracy and any claims relating to intellectual property or other legal rights.

Please read our guide on Copyrights for further information.

Storyplace is a business service and to continue to offer the service and function as a business you understand that we sometimes enable advertising on the Services, including in connection with the display of your content or other information. We may also use your Content to promote the Services but we will never sell your content to third parties without your explicit permission.

In your use of the Services, you may enter into additional terms and conditions and other agreements that alter or override these Terms of Service, such as when you choose to enter into a competition, special request, or submit to a sponsored collection. In case of any conflict or inconsistency, the terms and conditions of those additional terms and agreements would be stated to you and would override these Terms of Service.

Copyright Issues

Storyplace has adopted a policy toward copyright infringement on the Services in accordance with the United States Digital Millennium Copyright Act (the “DMCA”). While our policy is based on the US law we apply this same policy globally to all jurisdictions in which our Services are available. If you’d like to submit a claim of copyright infringement, please visit our page on Reporting Copyright Infringement. Storyplace reserves the right to remove content alleged to be infringing without prior notice, at our sole discretion, and without liability to you or anyone else. In appropriate circumstances, we will also terminate a user’s account if the user is determined to be a repeat infringer.

Content Guidelines

At StoryPlace, we offer a diverse range of stories and do not censor or modify the content posted, with the goal of creating a safe, inclusive and comfortable space for everyone. That being said, if a story or user violates our code of conduct, their story will be removed and the user’s account will be blocked from the app. At Storyplace, we embrace anonymity, promote kindness and enforce empathy. We ask that you separate listening from agreeing and help us create an inclusive and respectful space for everyone and their stories. We want to ensure that Storyplace users know what type of content they can discover as well as content they can or cannot post.

Storyplace Code of Conduct

By using the Storyplace Services you agree to the following code of conduct. 

• Post your thoughts and feelings, not spam. Please do not use Storyplace to express any hate speech, threats, offensive comments, spam, advertising or irrelevant content.
• Separate reading from agreeing. Not all people have the same opinions and that’s OK. Respect the story as told. If you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say it.
• Kindness is key! Treat all stories the way you would want yours to be treated. Keep in mind that sharing a story is an act of bravery.
• Empathy is not always pretty. Keep in mind that life’s biggest lessons often come from stories that are difficult to read. Appreciate different perspectives.

Stay informed! Familiarize yourself with our Code of Conduct, Content Guidelines, Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

THREE STRIKES YOU’RE OUT!

StoryPlace has a strict 3 STRIKES AND YOU ARE OUT Rule. If your profile is rightfully reported for breaking Storyplace code 3 times, you will be banned indefinitely from using our services.  You will be notified if your account is reported and all reports are reviewed. If you come across any content that violates our guidelines, let us know by reporting it.

SPAM: Any content that advertises products or services unrelated to, or not sanctioned by Storyplace is not permitted and will be removed.

Story Ratings on StoryPlace

Some stories have content that can be considered “Mature” or “Sensitive” for a general audience. All StoryPlace users are expected to rate their stories accordingly if the following criterion applies to their story. If you come across a story that has been rated incorrectly, you can let us know by reporting it. Please note that we will change your rating if it does not comply with these guidelines. If you are unsure about your story’s rating category, please email us at su[email protected] and we will guide you through this process.

Mature Rating

Mature stories are intended for an audience that is 18+ years of age. A story may be rated Mature if it contains any of the following:

• Sexual content (involving sexual intercourse and other sexual acts, including, but not limited to, oral sex or self-gratification, both consensual and non-consensual)
• Excessive use of curse words
• Drugs or substances that are overall illegal or only legal for 18+ people

Sensitive Rating

Sensitive stories are intended for an audience that can emotionally handle delicate content. A story may be rated Sensitive if it contains any of the following:

• Self-harm themes or scenes (including suicide and eating disorders)
• Graphic depictions of violence; including but not limited to: sexual, verbal, emotional and physical abuse.

Copyright

StoryPlace encourages all storytellers to express themselves and their creativity freely through original and true stories. We do not allow any copyright infringement or pirated material on the platform and will remove any works that we discover to have been published illegally.

While some users may not be aware of copyright law, we do our best to educate and inform our community. Please read below for more information about Copyright law:

How does Storyplace protect my story from being stolen?

The Storyplace platforms are designed with the intention of protecting Storytellers and their stories as much as possible. We have several measures in place to help Storyplace users feel safe and limit copyright infringement on our platforms:

• Interactions between users on StoryPlace are managed with full transparency to both parties. The moment a user takes any action on a story, (opens it, reads it, downloads material, sends a message, etc.) that action is recorded and an activity record is kept on file and visible to both parties at all times.
• By law, your work is automatically protected under Copyright Law as soon as you put it into a fixed format, such as writing it down. There are several additional copyright license tools that you can use to submit or register your work prior to posting on StoryPlace, and you can find them in our Copyrights article. Keep in mind that to get the most protection or sue if someone unlawfully infringes on your work, you need to register it in your country’s copyright office.
• We abide by the DMCA process, so if you believe your work has been copied improperly, you can submit a DMCA Takedown Request and we will respond as soon as possible.
• The copy/paste functions are also disabled on StoryPlace, which prevents users from easily copying your work.

What is considered copyright infringement?

• Posting the copyrighted works of others without their legal consent
• Posting on behalf of someone else and giving credit to them. This is still a violation of copyright and will be treated the same way. Consent is ALWAYS required from the person who owns the material or story.
• Adaptations or slight alterations to a work, such as changing names, copying the events and writing them in your own words, or simply changing a point of view.
• Using an image that you do not own. This includes making a cover with an image that you do not own the rights to (unless it is in the public domain).

What does and doesn't copyright protect?

Copyright only protects the physical representation of an idea, not the idea itself. Unfortunately, similar plots, story themes, and titles are not enough to constitute a copyright infringement. This is why there are many stories and movies that are very similar to each other.

Unless there is substantial evidence of copyright infringement that can hold up in a court of law, website administrators will not be able to remove the story. If this is the case, we suggest you try to contact the other writer and respectfully try to resolve the issue in private. If you are unsure of whether a work infringes your copyright, we encourage you to seek professional/legal advice before submitting a notice.

How does StoryPlace deal with copyright infringement?

StoryPlace takes copyright infringement very seriously. Users are not permitted to post stories that are not original material or that they do not own unless they have legal permission from the owner and can provide evidence when requested. Any published works that are reported to us, or that we discover, are removed immediately. If the work is not published, we require the owner to submit a Copyright infringement report and we will remove infringing works as quickly as possible.

How do I report copyright infringements on StoryPlace?

Please submit a Copyright Infringement report by going to www.storyplace.com/copyright-claim or email us at [email protected]

Copyright in your country

If you want to register your story with your country’s copyright office, there are a lot of resources online to help you. You can search for your country’s copyright office through WIPO’s Directory of Intellectual Property Offices at http://www.wipo.int/directory/en/urls.jsp.

 If you have any additional questions or comments please email us at [email protected]