NovelPedia Author Content & Publication Guidelines

NovelPedia was created to give authors a space where stories can thrive without unnecessary restrictions while still protecting the platform and community from real-world risks.

As a global marketplace for stories, we operate under laws from many regions. That means we have to draw clear boundaries, not to stifle creativity, but to keep both authors and NovelPedia safe.

When you publish on NovelPedia, you agree that:

• You hold the rights to your work, or you knowingly publish at your own legal risk.
• You take full legal and financial responsibility for your content.
• Your work follows NovelPedia's guidelines, global laws, and community standards.

Breaking these rules can lead to removal of your work, account suspension, or permanent ban at NovelPedia's discretion.

These guidelines apply to all content you post on NovelPedia, from full stories to short descriptions, comments, forum discussions, and cover art.

Last Updated: August 15th, 2025 - Version: 1.0

1. Intellectual Property & Originality

Ownership & Rights:

• All works must be uploaded by the original creator or someone with verifiable legal publishing rights.
• For legal purposes, translations are considered fanfiction and are treated under the same rules.

2. License Grant to NovelPedia

• By uploading content, you grant NovelPedia a non-exclusive, worldwide license to host, store, display, and distribute your work on our services for the purposes of providing the platform.
• This license is limited to operating the service and does not transfer copyright ownership from you to NovelPedia.
• This license can be revoked anytime by deleting your novel from the website.

3. Fanfiction Monetization Policy

NovelPedia allows reader support for fanfiction through internal "Gifts" and approved external platforms (e.g., Patreon, Ko-fi).

However, direct monetization through NovelPedia's other internal systems is not permitted unless all of the following conditions are met:

• The original work's author is a NovelPedia author, and the original work is a NovelPedia exclusive.
• Written permission is given by the original author to create the fanfiction.

Legal Responsibility

• The fanfiction author is solely responsible for ensuring compliance with all applicable intellectual property laws.
• NovelPedia does not verify rights beyond the above requirements and will direct any legal disputes solely to the author.

General Rules for Fanfiction

• All fanfiction must be tagged as Fanfiction.
• The original author, IP holder, and title must be credited in the synopsis.
• The work must not present itself as official or licensed.
• Where applicable, clearly indicate in the synopsis or first chapter that the work is an unofficial derivative work.

Monetization Restrictions by IP

• NovelPedia may restrict monetization for fanfiction involving certain IPs with known high legal risk (for example, companies with a history of strict copyright enforcement such as Disney or Nintendo), even if the work is otherwise allowed to remain on the platform.

NovelPedia's Position

NovelPedia is a neutral hosting platform and marketplace for stories.

• External Reader Support: NovelPedia does not take a share of revenue from authors' external reader support (via legal platforms such as Patreon, Ko-fi, etc.) unless it falls under a contracted monetization agreement as defined above.
• Internal Reader Support: In regards to internal reader support (such as Gifts, Privilege, and Ad Revenue), NovelPedia will take a cut deemed necessary for platform maintenance and processing.
• Legal Compliance: NovelPedia reserves the right to remove works if credible legal claims are raised.

4. Parody, Satire & "Thin Disguise"

• Fictionalized companies, products, and characters inspired by real ones ("thin disguise") are allowed if:
  • They are transformative and clearly fictional.
  • They do not use actual trademarks, logos, copyrighted designs, or brand assets.
  • They are not defamatory in a way that could create legal risk for NovelPedia.
• NovelPedia reserves discretion to determine if such depictions exceed platform risk standards.

5. Prohibited & Restricted Content

Sexual Content & Erotica

Prohibited:

• Any sexual or romantic content involving minors under 18, or characters who appear under 18 regardless of stated age/species.
• Sexualized depictions of animals, corpses, or incest presented erotically.
• Sexual violence, coercion, or abuse presented in a positive or eroticized manner.
• Erotica: Works where explicit sexual content is the primary driver of the plot or reader experience.

Permitted with Restrictions:

• Romance works with sexual scenes are allowed if explicit content is not the primary focus.
• Mature scenes are allowed if integral to plot and appropriately tagged.
• All explicit sexual scenes must be tagged R-18 Sexual Content.
• No explicit sexual content in titles, covers, or any public-facing promotional material (including blurbs, banners, or preview chapters).

Violence, Gore & Harmful Themes

Allowed:

• Combat, battle, horror, and psychological tension.
• Descriptions of cruelty, violence, or dark acts that serve the plot, worldbuilding, or character development.

Prohibited:

• Gratuitous gore: Excessive, graphic detail intended purely for shock, disgust, or fetishization, without meaningful connection to the story.

Tagging Requirement:

• Any work containing graphic depictions of dismemberment, prolonged torture, explicit mutilation, sexual violence, or comparable extreme scenes must be tagged R-18 Violence.
• Standard battle injuries do not require R-18 Violence tagging unless they meet the above threshold.

Tagging Note:

• All tagging requirements are explained in detail in Section 9 - Tagging & Rating Requirements. Authors must ensure their works are tagged according to these rules.

Real-World Politics, Religion & Current Events

NovelPedia is an escapist fiction platform, but authors may use elements of the present day as creative foundations.

Allowed:

• Fiction set in the present day, including during wars, pandemics, or other global events, as long as they are presented in a fictionalized or alternate context.
• Mentioning real events by name (e.g., COVID-19, World War II) in a fictionalized context.
• Alternate histories, speculative fiction, or "what if" scenarios based on real-world timelines.

Prohibited:

• Depicting real governments, leaders, or groups in a way that creates clear defamation or incitement risk.
• Treating ongoing real-world tragedies in a sensational, exploitative, or hate-driven manner.
• Presenting current events in a way that could be mistaken for factual reporting or activism.

Hate Speech & Discrimination

• No attacks on real-world protected identities (race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, religion).
• Fictional discrimination is fine if clearly fictional and not targeted at real groups.

Real People & Defamation

• No depictions of identifiable real-world individuals (living or recently deceased) in defamatory, sexual, or exploitative contexts.
• Historical figures may be depicted if public domain and fictional

6. Prohibited Conduct

Authors may not use NovelPedia to:

• Engage in illegal activity.
• Harass, threaten, or abuse readers, staff, or other authors.
• Impersonate other authors, readers, or staff.
• Spam, scam, or distribute malware.
• Interfere with the operation or security of NovelPedia.

7. Artwork, Media & Cover Policy

• Artwork must be owned or licensed by the uploader.
• Covers must be relevant to the story and appropriate for a general audience.
• Authors are responsible for ensuring all linked or embedded media (images, audio, extras) complies with NovelPedia's rules and copyright law.

Prohibited:

• Explicit or fetish imagery.
• Sexualized depictions of minors.
• "Shock art" (excessive gore, sexual violence).
• Real trademarks, logos, or celebrity likenesses without license.

8. AI-Generated Content

• AI-Assisted: Allowed for editing, proofreading & translation.

(Note- Writing is an iterative experience, we advise you to make mistakes, ask your peer authors and learn instead of using ai to paraphrase. Thank You.)

• AI-Generated: AI Generated content is strictly not allowed.
• AI may not be used for comments, reviews, or forum posts.
• AI content must comply with all guidelines.

9. Tagging & Rating Requirements

All explicit content must be appropriately tagged to inform readers. NovelPedia uses two R-18 tags for mature content:

R-18 Sexual Content

Apply this tag if the work contains:

• Explicit sexual acts or detailed intimacy scenes
• Sexualized nudity or fetish elements
• Sexual violence (must also tag R-18 Violence)

R-18 Violence

Apply this tag if the work contains:

• Graphic gore, mutilation, or dismemberment
• Prolonged torture scenes
• Sexual violence (must also tag R-18 Sexual Content)
• Other highly graphic depictions of harm

Explicit Tagging Rule:

• If a work contains both explicit sexual content and extreme violence, both tags must be applied.
• NovelPedia may, at its discretion, determine if content exceeds platform standards for gratuitous, exploitative, or shock content.

Tagging Enforcement:

• Incorrect or missing R-18 tags may result in warnings, content removal, or account penalties, at NovelPedia's sole discretion.

10. Fiction Disclaimer

For works referencing real events or people:

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, governments, organizations, or events is purely coincidental or fictionalized for narrative purposes.

11. DMCA & Repeat Infringer Policy

• NovelPedia complies with DMCA and equivalent international takedown laws.
• Verified legal complaints will be investigated promptly.
• Accounts of repeat infringers (two or more verified violations) may be restricted or terminated.

12. Geo-Restriction & Regional Compliance

• NovelPedia reserves the right to restrict access to certain works in specific jurisdictions where legal, regulatory, or market conditions require it, without removing the work globally.
• Authors are responsible for ensuring their work complies with the laws of their country of residence and any regions where their work is distributed.

13. No Endorsement Statement

• Views and opinions expressed in works published on NovelPedia are those of the authors and do not reflect the positions or opinions of NovelPedia.

14. Responsibility & Liability

Publishing on NovelPedia means:

• You accept full legal responsibility for your content.
• NovelPedia may remove works that create legal risk without notice.
• NovelPedia is a neutral hosting service, not a publisher, and assumes no liability for author works.

15. Enforcement & Discretion

• Violations may lead to warnings, removals, suspension, or bans.
• NovelPedia reserves absolute discretion over what content is hosted.
• Where possible, NovelPedia will provide a brief reason for content removal to help authors adjust their work.
• Guidelines may be updated at any time to meet legal or platform needs.

(c) 2025 NovelPedia. All Rights Reserved.

Last Updated: March 19th, 2026