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Updated 2 August 2026

The rules, in language you can actually use

Fiction is allowed to be dark here. What follows is about harm to real people — not about protecting readers from difficult stories. Every clause is numbered so a moderation notice can point at exactly the one that applies.

What you can write§ 1 · 5 clausesRatings and content warnings§ 2 · 3 clausesOwnership and originality§ 3 · 4 clausesHow we treat each other§ 4 · 4 clauses
How to read this

Two things worth knowing first

Most platform guidelines are written by lawyers to be defensible rather than useful, which is why nobody reads them and everybody is surprised when something gets removed. These are written to be read once and remembered.

First, depicting something is not endorsing it — a story can contain terrible people doing terrible things and be entirely within these rules. Second, almost everything here is recoverable: the enforcement ladder starts with a note and time to fix it, not a deletion.

Two categories are exceptions to that patience, and they're stated plainly in clauses 1.2 and 1.4.

Write what you need to write. Rate it honestly. Don't aim it at a real person.

The principle underneath all of it

§ 1

What you can write

Fiction is allowed to be dark. Readora hosts horror, crime, tragedy and morally repugnant characters, because those are legitimate subjects. The limits below are about harm to real people, not about protecting readers from difficult stories.

1.1

Difficult subject matter is permitted

Depicting something is not endorsing it. Violence, abuse, addiction, bigotry and grief can all appear in a story. What matters is that the work is presented as fiction and rated honestly.

Allowed
  • A villain whose views are repellent and stated plainly on the page.
  • A story about surviving abuse, told without flinching.
  • Graphic violence in horror, crime or war fiction.
Not allowed
  • Material written to instruct rather than depict — a working method for harming people presented as narrative.
  • Content that presents the sexual abuse of children in any form, fictional or otherwise.
1.2

Sexual content involving minors is never permitted

This is absolute and has no artistic exception. Any character depicted in sexual content must be an adult, and must read as one. Accounts posting this material are removed permanently and reported to the relevant authorities without warning or appeal.

1.3

No content that targets real people

Do not publish work that harasses, threatens, sexualises or defames an identifiable living person. Public figures may be written about critically and satirically; they may not be sexualised or threatened.

1.4

No incitement

Content that calls for violence against a person or group, promotes a violent organisation, or celebrates a mass-casualty attack is removed regardless of framing.

1.5

Self-harm must be handled with care

Stories may deal with suicide and self-harm — many readers need exactly that story. What is not allowed is material presenting it as desirable or providing method detail. Chapters covering it should carry a content warning.

§ 2

Ratings and content warnings

Rating your work accurately is the main thing you can do for your readers. It is also the thing most likely to get your story restricted if you get it wrong.

2.1

Mark mature work as mature

A story needs the mature flag if it contains explicit sexual content, graphic violence, or sustained treatment of subjects like abuse or addiction. When you are unsure, mark it. Under-rating is treated as a violation; over-rating never is.

2.2

Warn at chapter level where it matters

If a single chapter is significantly darker than the story around it, say so at the top of that chapter. A one-line warning costs you nothing and is the difference between a reader trusting you and a reader leaving.

2.3

Do not use warnings as advertising

Tags and warnings exist so readers can find and avoid things accurately. Adding unrelated or sensational tags to catch traffic degrades discovery for everyone and is treated as spam under 4.2.

§ 3

Ownership and originality

You keep the rights to what you publish here. The other side of that is that you must actually hold those rights.

3.1

Publish only what is yours to publish

Do not upload someone else's writing, whether from another platform, a published book, or a co-author who has not agreed. Plagiarism is the fastest route to permanent removal on this platform.

3.2

Fan fiction is welcome, within limits

Transformative work built on existing worlds is part of how serial fiction has always worked and is allowed here. It cannot be sold: fan fiction may not use per-chapter pricing or be placed behind a paywall.

3.3

Disclose AI assistance

Using a model to draft, edit or brainstorm is permitted, and Readora ships tools that do exactly that. Mark the story as AI-assisted so readers can make their own choice. Publishing bulk generated text as original work is not permitted, and undisclosed use found later is treated as a 3.1 violation.

3.4

Respond to takedowns properly

If a valid copyright claim is made against your work it will be removed pending resolution. Repeated substantiated claims end in account termination. Counter-notices are welcome and are read by a person.

§ 4

How we treat each other

Comments are where serial fiction lives. They are also where it most often goes wrong.

4.1

Criticise the work, not the writer

Harsh reviews of a story are fine, and useful. Attacks on the person who wrote it are not. The line is whether the comment is about the writing or about the human being.

4.2

No spam or manipulation

This covers advertising unrelated products, mass-posting to unrelated stories, inflating reads or ratings by any means, and running multiple accounts to boost your own work. Metrics are how readers find good writing; corrupting them harms every author here.

4.3

No harassment or pile-ons

Repeated unwanted contact, coordinated brigading of an author or reader, and doxxing are all removable offences. Organising a pile-on is treated the same as taking part in one.

4.4

One person, one account

Pen names are welcome and encouraged — many writers keep separate identities for separate genres. Using multiple accounts to evade moderation or manipulate metrics is not the same thing and is treated under 4.2.

§ 5

What happens when a rule is broken

Four steps. Most issues stop at the first one, and you'll always be told which clause applies and why.

  1. 01

    A note

    For most first issues — a mis-rated story, an unmarked chapter — you get a message explaining what to change and time to change it. Nothing is removed.

  2. 02

    Restriction

    The work is hidden from discovery or age-restricted while you fix it. Your readers keep their access; new readers do not find it until it's resolved.

  3. 03

    Removal

    The work comes down. You keep your copy and your account, and you can appeal. We will tell you which clause was breached and why.

  4. 04

    Termination

    Reserved for repeated violations after removal, plagiarism, and the categories under 1.2 and 1.4 — which skip every step above and go straight here.

Reporting something

Every story and comment has a report control. Tell us which clause you think applies — reports that cite one get resolved considerably faster than reports that say "this is bad".

Appealing a decision

Reply to the moderation message you received, or email support@readora.com. A person reads every appeal. We aim to answer within three working days, and we do overturn decisions.

These will change

Guidelines written before a platform has many users are guesses. As real situations arrive that these clauses handle badly, we'll revise them and say what changed rather than quietly editing the page. Clause numbers stay stable — new rules go at the end of a section, so a notice citing 3.2 still means 3.2 a year from now.

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Last updated 2 August 2026. Questions about a specific clause go to support@readora.com.
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