Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using OnlyLit (the “Service”), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service (“Terms”). If you do not agree to these Terms in their entirety, you may not access or use the Service. These Terms constitute a legally binding agreement between you and OnlyLit LLC (“OnlyLit,” “we,” “our,” or “us”).

Your continued use of the Service after any modification to these Terms constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms.

2. Description of Service

OnlyLit is a platform for original, long-form creative and literary fiction that connects writers (“Creators”) with readers (“Subscribers”). Creators publish original fiction, serialized stories, essays, and other literary work in which character, voice, and plot are the focus. Readers may access content through free tiers or paid subscriptions managed through the platform.

Mature themes, including sexual content where it is relevant to a longer, character- and plot-driven arc, are permitted only as elements of a narrative work, never as its primary purpose. Content whose primary purpose is sexual gratification is not permitted (see Section 7 and the Content Policy). OnlyLit provides the technology infrastructure connecting Creators and Subscribers and does not produce or direct Creator content, but it reviews content reactively and proactively to enforce these standards.

3. Account Registration and Eligibility

To access certain features of the Service, you must register for an account. By registering, you represent and warrant that:

• You are at least 18 years of age;
• All information you provide is accurate, current, and complete;
• You will maintain the accuracy of your account information;
• You are not prohibited from using the Service under any applicable law; and
• You will keep your account credentials confidential and are responsible for all activity under your account.

OnlyLit reserves the right to suspend or terminate any account that contains false or misleading information, or that is operated by a person who does not meet the eligibility requirements above.

4. Age Verification

The Service is strictly limited to individuals who are 18 years of age or older. During account registration and prior to accessing age-restricted content, you will be required to confirm your date of birth and attest via a checkbox declaration that you are at least 18 years old.

This declaration is made under penalty of account termination. OnlyLit reserves the right to terminate, without notice, any account found to belong to a person under 18 years of age. Where required by law, OnlyLit may report evidence of underage access to appropriate authorities.

OnlyLit does not knowingly permit minors to access the Service. If you believe a minor has registered an account, please contact us immediately at admin@onlylit.com.

5. Subscriptions and Billing

Access to certain Creator content requires a paid subscription. All billing is processed through Stripe, Inc. (“Stripe”), a third-party payment processor. By subscribing, you authorize Stripe to charge your payment method on the applicable billing cycle. OnlyLit does not store your full payment card details.

Subscriptions are billed on a recurring monthly basis unless you cancel before the renewal date. Refunds are not provided for partial billing periods except as required by applicable law or at OnlyLit's sole discretion.

OnlyLit retains a platform fee of 5% from all subscription revenue. The remaining portion is remitted to the applicable Creator through Stripe Connect. Creators are responsible for all applicable taxes on earnings received through the platform.

6. Creator Terms

Creators who publish content on OnlyLit are independent contractors and are not employees, agents, partners, or joint venturers of OnlyLit. Nothing in these Terms creates an employment relationship or entitlement to benefits of any kind.

Ownership of Content. Creators retain full ownership of all content they post to the platform. By posting content, a Creator grants OnlyLit a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, display, reproduce, and distribute that content solely for the purpose of providing the Service to Subscribers who have purchased access. This license terminates when the Creator removes the content from the platform, subject to any active subscription obligations.

Creators are solely responsible for ensuring their content complies with applicable law and with OnlyLit's Content Policy. OnlyLit reserves the right to remove any content or suspend any Creator account that violates these Terms or the Content Policy.

7. Content Standards and User Conduct

OnlyLit is a creative-fiction platform. Works published on the Service must be narrative fiction that stands on its own as a story. Mature themes, including sexual content where relevant to a longer, character- and plot-driven arc, are permitted only as elements of a work, not as its purpose. Content whose primary purpose is sexual gratification, meaning material produced for that purpose rather than as narrative fiction, is not permitted and will be removed. OnlyLit determines whether a work meets this standard at its sole discretion.

By using the Service, you agree not to post, upload, or transmit any content that:

• Depicts, describes, or implies sexual activity involving any person under the age of 18, including fictional characters. Violation of this prohibition will result in immediate account termination and mandatory reporting to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) and relevant law enforcement;
• Depicts non-consensual sexual activity in an approving or glorifying manner;
• Threatens, harasses, stalks, or doxxes any individual;
• Is defamatory, fraudulent, or constitutes an invasion of privacy;
• Violates any applicable local, state, national, or international law or regulation;
• Infringes the intellectual property rights of any third party; or
• Is designed to deceive users or manipulate the platform's systems.

All content that contains adult or sexually explicit material must be flagged as 18+ by the Creator prior to publication.

8. Intellectual Property and DMCA

OnlyLit respects intellectual property rights and expects users to do the same. If you believe that content on the Service infringes your copyright, you may submit a written takedown notice to admin@onlylit.com pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (17 U.S.C. § 512). Your notice must include:

• Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to be infringed;
• Identification of the allegedly infringing material and its location on the Service;
• Your contact information (name, address, telephone, and email);
• A statement that you have a good-faith belief that the use is not authorized;
• A statement, under penalty of perjury, that the information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner; and
• Your physical or electronic signature.

OnlyLit will respond to valid DMCA notices within 14 business days and will take appropriate action, which may include removing or disabling access to the allegedly infringing content.

9. Termination

OnlyLit may suspend or permanently terminate your account, with or without notice, for any violation of these Terms, including but not limited to violations of the content standards in Section 7. OnlyLit may also terminate accounts at its sole discretion for any other reason, including inactivity or business necessity.

Upon termination, your right to access the Service ceases immediately. Provisions of these Terms that by their nature survive termination (including Sections 6, 8, 10, 11, and 12) will remain in effect.

10. Disclaimers

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. ONLYLIT DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE, OR SECURE, OR THAT ANY DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED.

OnlyLit does not endorse, control, or assume responsibility for any content posted by Creators. Creators are solely responsible for their content and any claims arising from it.

11. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, IN NO EVENT WILL ONLYLIT LLC, ITS OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, OR AGENTS BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES — INCLUDING LOSS OF PROFITS, DATA, OR GOODWILL — ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO YOUR USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICE, EVEN IF ONLYLIT HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

IN NO EVENT WILL ONLYLIT'S TOTAL CUMULATIVE LIABILITY TO YOU EXCEED THE GREATER OF (A) THE AMOUNT YOU PAID TO ONLYLIT IN THE SIX MONTHS PRECEDING THE CLAIM OR (B) ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS (US $100).

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of certain damages. In such jurisdictions, OnlyLit's liability is limited to the greatest extent permitted by law.

12. Dispute Resolution and Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of New York, without regard to its conflict of law provisions.

Any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service that cannot be resolved informally shall be resolved by binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, as amended by these Terms. The arbitration will be conducted in New York, New York. Each party will bear its own costs unless the arbitrator determines otherwise. The arbitrator's award will be final and binding and may be entered as a judgment in any court of competent jurisdiction.

Class Action Waiver. You agree that any arbitration or proceeding shall be limited to the dispute between you and OnlyLit individually. You waive any right to participate in a class action lawsuit or class-wide arbitration.

Notwithstanding the above, either party may seek emergency injunctive or other equitable relief in a court of competent jurisdiction in New York County, New York.

13. Electronic Communications and Notifications

Consent to electronic communications. By creating an account, you consent to receive communications from OnlyLit electronically, including by email to the address associated with your account and through in-product notifications. You agree that all agreements, notices, disclosures, and other communications we provide to you electronically satisfy any legal requirement that such communications be in writing. This consent is provided in accordance with the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (E-SIGN Act) and applicable state law.

Types of communications. The communications we send fall into two categories:

• Service and transactional communications, which are necessary to operate your account and the Service — for example, account verification and security alerts, billing and subscription notices, responses to your requests, moderation or enforcement notices, and notices of changes to these Terms or our policies. Because these are integral to the Service and may be legally required, you cannot opt out of them while you maintain an account.
• Notification communications, which inform you of activity relating to your account — for example, new posts from Creators you follow or subscribe to, direct messages, and comments or replies. These are optional and you may enable or disable them, individually or all at once, at any time.

Managing notifications. You control notification emails in your account settings under “Notifications,” and every notification email includes a link to manage your preferences. OnlyLit may also suppress duplicate or redundant notifications — for example, while you are actively using the Service, or by consolidating repeated messages from the same sender until you have viewed them. Disabling notifications does not affect service or transactional communications, which we will continue to send as necessary.

Accuracy of contact information. You are responsible for keeping the email address and other contact information associated with your account accurate and current. Notices sent to the email address on file are deemed given and received when sent, whether or not you actually receive or access them. OnlyLit is not responsible for communications that fail to reach you because of outdated, inaccurate, blocked, or non-functioning contact information.

User-to-user messages. Direct messages and comments are communications between users. You are responsible for your own communications, and OnlyLit does not endorse, monitor, or assume responsibility for the content of communications exchanged between users, except as described in our Content Policy.

Withdrawing consent. You may withdraw your consent to receive optional notification communications at any time through your settings. Because electronic delivery of service, transactional, and legal notices is essential to providing the Service, withdrawing consent to those communications is not possible while your account remains open; to stop receiving them you must close your account.

14. Account Deletion and Data Retention

You may delete your account at any time from Account → Settings. Deleting your account is permanent and cannot be undone: it cancels your active subscriptions and removes your sign-in credentials, profile, and personal activity data (such as bookmarks, reading history, and notifications).

Subscriptions. Deleting your account cancels your active subscriptions. Except where required by law, refunds are not provided for the current billing period (see Section 5).

Data we retain. Consistent with applicable law, after deletion we retain limited records where we have a legal basis or obligation to do so, including:

• Financial and transaction records required for tax, accounting, and audit purposes. For Creators, this includes the legal name, address, and tax identification information required for tax reporting (e.g., IRS Forms 1099), retained for the period required by law;
• Records related to safety, moderation, and enforcement — including reports, moderation actions, and age-verification attestations — to comply with our legal obligations and to prevent fraud and abuse; and
• Any information we are required to retain by law, regulation, legal process, or governmental request.

Retained records are minimized and, where feasible, dissociated from your public profile. Records held by our payment processor (Stripe) are governed by Stripe's own retention practices.

Creator accounts. Because Creator accounts involve active subscribers, payouts, and tax-reporting obligations, a Creator account cannot be deleted through the self-service flow. To close a Creator account, contact admin@onlylit.com.

15. Changes to These Terms

OnlyLit may modify these Terms at any time. When we make material changes, we will provide at least 30 days' advance notice by email to the address associated with your account. Your continued use of the Service after the effective date of any revision constitutes your acceptance of the updated Terms. If you do not agree to the revised Terms, you must close your account before the effective date.

16. Contact

For questions about these Terms, please contact: