Terms of Service

1. Acceptance

These Terms of Service ("Terms") are a binding agreement between you and Drift & Quill Publishing LLC ("Drift & Quill," "we," "us," or "our").

By accessing, browsing, creating an account, publishing Content, purchasing a product, subscribing to InkShare, or otherwise using the Platform, you agree to these Terms and all policies incorporated into them.

If you do not agree, you must not use the Platform.

If you use the Platform on behalf of a company, organization, or other legal entity, you represent that you have authority to bind that entity, and "you" includes that entity.

2. Platform definition

"Platform" means Drift & Quill's websites, applications, software, APIs, services, features, systems, and related offerings, including future versions and successor services.

"Content" means text, stories, chapters, novels, comics, manga, webtoons, illustrations, images, audio, video, comments, profiles, metadata, listings, reviews, messages, and other material submitted, uploaded, posted, transmitted, purchased, or made available through the Platform.

"Creator" means a User who publishes, uploads, distributes, licenses, or monetizes Content.

"User" means any person or entity that accesses or uses the Platform.

"Platform Policies" means these Terms, the Community Guidelines, Creator Guidelines, Copyright and DMCA Policy, Privacy Policy, and Monetization & Payments policies incorporated into these Terms.

3. Eligibility

You must satisfy the minimum age and legal-capacity requirements presented at registration and applicable law.

Unless Drift & Quill expressly permits otherwise:

• you must be at least 13 years old to create or maintain a general User account;
• you must not use the Platform if applicable law prohibits you from doing so;
• you must provide accurate age and registration information; and
• creator monetization and legally binding commercial activity may require you to be at least 18 years old or the age of majority applicable to you, or to use an arrangement expressly approved by Drift & Quill.

If you are under the age of majority, your use may require a parent or legal guardian's involvement or consent where required by law.

We may request age or identity verification where reasonably necessary for safety, compliance, payments, or fraud prevention.

4. Accounts

You are responsible for:

• keeping account credentials confidential;
• maintaining accurate account information;
• securing devices used to access your account;
• all activity occurring through your account, except where prohibited by law; and
• promptly reporting unauthorized access.

You may not sell, rent, transfer, share, or sublicense an account without Drift & Quill's written permission.

You may not create accounts through unauthorized automation or create multiple accounts to evade enforcement, limits, promotions, or payment controls.

We may refuse account creation or impose reasonable account limits.

5. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• violate law or Platform Policies;
• infringe or misappropriate third-party rights;
• upload Content without required rights or permissions;
• harass, threaten, stalk, exploit, or abuse another person;
• publish prohibited illegal or harmful Content;
• impersonate another person or falsely claim affiliation;
• engage in fraud, scams, payment abuse, or deceptive conduct;
• manipulate Platform metrics;
• scrape, crawl, harvest, bulk-download, mirror, index, or systematically collect Platform Content or data without express permission;
• bypass access controls, paywalls, mature-content controls, geographic restrictions, or security mechanisms;
• reverse engineer or attack Platform infrastructure except to the limited extent non-waivable law permits;
• upload malicious code;
• interfere with Platform operation;
• use unauthorized automated access;
• use Platform data or Content to train, fine-tune, evaluate, or operate AI/ML systems without written permission;
• reproduce, redistribute, resell, publicly display, or commercially exploit Platform Content except as expressly authorized;
• use Platform Content for data harvesting, dataset creation, model training, fine-tuning, evaluation, benchmarking, retrieval systems, or other automated machine-learning purposes without express written permission from Drift & Quill and, where applicable, the rights holder;
• systematically download, archive, mirror, cache, or reconstruct Creator Content outside the ordinary functionality provided by the Platform;
• build a competing product or service using Platform Content, non-public data, or protected functionality; or
• assist, encourage, or facilitate another person in doing any prohibited act.

5A. No transaction circumvention

Creators may not use the Platform to direct Users around Platform checkout, Stripe Connect, applicable Platform fees, or InkShare access controls for the purpose of avoiding fees, restrictions, revenue allocations, or other Platform requirements.

Users may not use alternate accounts, payment methods, links, codes, downloads, scraping, or other technical or non-technical methods to obtain paid or restricted Content without authorization.

Drift & Quill may restrict Content, suspend monetization, withhold or adjust amounts where permitted by law, or terminate accounts involved in transaction circumvention.

6. Platform license to operate

You retain ownership of Content you submit, subject to the licenses in these Terms.

By submitting or publishing Content, you grant Drift & Quill a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable and sublicensable license, during the period reasonably necessary for the purposes below, to host, store, reproduce, encode, transcode, format, adapt, modify, translate, display, perform, distribute, transmit, cache, index, create thumbnails or previews of, and otherwise process the Content as reasonably necessary to:

• operate and provide the Platform;
• deliver Content to Users according to access settings;
• maintain backups and disaster recovery;
• secure and protect the Platform;
• detect fraud, abuse, and policy violations;
• comply with law;
• improve Platform functionality;
• create technical representations required for different devices and formats; and
• market the specific Content and Platform, including displaying titles, covers, excerpts, thumbnails, creator names, and other promotional metadata in connection with the Platform.

The license does not transfer ownership of your Content to Drift & Quill.

The license is limited to the purposes stated above and does not authorize Drift & Quill to commercially exploit Creator Content independently of the Platform except as reasonably necessary to operate, market, administer, secure, or develop the Platform and its services.

Where Content has been made public or distributed to other Users, technical copies, cached copies, backups, search indexes, moderation records, transaction records, and legally required records may continue to exist for a reasonable period after deletion or account termination.

7. User access license

Subject to these Terms, Drift & Quill grants you a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to access and use the Platform for personal, lawful purposes.

Purchased or subscription Content is licensed or made available to you for personal use; it is not sold to you with ownership of Drift & Quill's or a Creator's intellectual-property rights unless expressly stated.

You may not copy, distribute, publicly perform, publicly display, resell, sublicense, or commercially exploit Content except where the Platform expressly permits it.

8. Creator warranties

Each Creator represents and warrants, to the maximum extent permitted by law, that:

• the Creator owns or controls the rights necessary for the Content;
• the Content does not knowingly infringe or misappropriate third-party rights;
• the Creator has obtained required permissions, releases, and licenses;
• the Content complies with applicable law and Platform Policies;
• monetized Content is lawfully offered for sale;
• descriptions and pricing are accurate;
• required taxes and registrations are handled by the Creator;
• the Creator will respond in good faith to legitimate buyer and rights-holder issues; and
• the Creator will not knowingly submit fraudulent, stolen, or unauthorized Content.

9. Moderation

Drift & Quill does not promise to pre-screen all Content.

We may, but are not obligated to, review, monitor, classify, rank, restrict, remove, disable, age-gate, demonetize, or otherwise act on Content.

Moderation may be performed by people, automated systems, or a combination of both.

A failure to detect or remove Content does not waive our rights to act later.

10. Recommendations and rankings

Recommendations, rankings, search results, feeds, popularity indicators, and similar discovery features may be based on changing signals and algorithms.

We do not guarantee placement, visibility, audience size, readership, engagement, sales, subscriber counts, or earnings.

Creators have no ownership interest in any particular ranking position or recommendation placement.

11. Platform changes

We may modify, suspend, discontinue, replace, or limit any Platform feature, including monetization, rankings, storage, downloads, APIs, formats, discovery systems, or access methods.

We may impose reasonable usage limits.

Where required by law, we will provide required notice or remedies.

12. Third-party services

The Platform may rely on third-party services, including hosting, authentication, analytics, payment processing, email, storage, content delivery, and fraud-prevention providers.

Third-party services may have their own terms and privacy policies. Drift & Quill does not control third-party services and is not responsible for their independent acts or failures except where applicable law provides otherwise.

13. Payments, Stripe Connect, and Creator transactions

Drift & Quill uses third-party payment infrastructure, including Stripe Connect, to connect eligible Creator merchants to Drift & Quill's Platform services.

For Creator transactions, the Creator is the independent merchant and rights holder responsible for the underlying work, listing, product, transaction, and applicable merchant obligations. Stripe Connect provides the payment-account connectivity and payment functionality used by the Platform.

Drift & Quill may receive a Platform service fee for providing its technology and Platform services. The applicable fee, calculation method, and other commercial terms may be disclosed through the Creator dashboard, Creator agreement, transaction flow, or other applicable documentation.

The Platform service fee is compensation for Drift & Quill's services and does not represent an ownership interest in Creator Content.

Payment processing, connected-account requirements, identity verification, payout timing, reserves, disputes, refunds, chargebacks, account restrictions, and other payment matters may also be governed by Stripe's terms and the requirements of payment networks and financial institutions.

Creators must maintain an eligible and properly verified connected payment account where required and must provide accurate information to Drift & Quill and Stripe.

Drift & Quill may delay, suspend, reverse, offset, or withhold amounts where reasonably necessary for fraud prevention, chargebacks, refunds, legal compliance, payment-provider requirements, account reconciliation, or protection of Drift & Quill or third parties.

Drift & Quill does not guarantee that any payment provider will approve, maintain, or continue a Creator's connected account.

Nothing in these Terms changes the contractual relationship established between a Creator and Stripe or any other payment provider.

For InkShare subscriptions, Drift & Quill is the subscription provider as expressly described in the InkShare provisions below.

14. Taxes

Creators are responsible for taxes, reporting, registrations, licenses, and other obligations arising from their activities, Content, transactions, and earnings except to the extent Drift & Quill is legally required to collect, withhold, report, or remit an amount.

Creator responsibility includes determining whether the Creator must register for sales, use, VAT, GST, income, self-employment, or other taxes and maintaining any registrations or exemptions required for the Creator's business.

Drift & Quill may collect tax information, issue tax forms, withhold amounts, or collect and remit taxes when required by law or payment-provider rules.

Drift & Quill may collect information and withhold, report, or remit amounts when required by law or payment-provider rules.

15. Suspension and termination

We may suspend, restrict, or terminate an account or access to any portion of the Platform where permitted by law, including for:

• violation of these Terms or Platform Policies;
• fraud or suspected fraud;
• payment abuse or chargeback abuse;
• infringement complaints or repeat infringement;
• security risks;
• illegal activity;
• abuse of other Users;
• misuse of Platform systems;
• inaccurate or fraudulent account information;
• legal or regulatory requirements; or
• protection of Drift & Quill, its Users, or third parties.

Where appropriate and practical, we may provide notice and an opportunity to cure. We are not required to do so when immediate action is reasonably necessary.

16. Effect of termination

You may stop using the Platform at any time.

Termination does not erase obligations that arose before termination.

Provisions concerning Content rights, payment obligations, intellectual property, indemnification, disclaimers, limitation of liability, dispute resolution, governing law, and any other provisions that by their nature should survive will survive termination.

17. No guarantee of preservation

You are responsible for maintaining your own backups of Content.

Drift & Quill does not guarantee permanent storage or preservation of Content and is not responsible for loss of Content except to the extent liability cannot lawfully be excluded.

18A. Platform intermediary disclaimer

Creator Content is supplied by independent third parties. Drift & Quill does not guarantee the accuracy, originality, legality, safety, quality, ownership, availability, or merchantability of Creator Content.

Drift & Quill does not have a general obligation to monitor Creator Content for infringement or unlawful activity except to the extent imposed by applicable law.

The fact that Drift & Quill permits Content to appear on the Platform, makes Content searchable, recommends Content, provides a Creator profile, enables a transaction, or includes Content in InkShare does not constitute a representation that Drift & Quill has reviewed, approved, verified, endorsed, or guaranteed that Content.

18. Disclaimer of warranties

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE PLATFORM AND ALL PLATFORM SERVICES ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE."

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, DRIFT & QUILL DISCLAIMS WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, ACCURACY, AVAILABILITY, SECURITY, AND QUIET ENJOYMENT.

WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT:

• THE PLATFORM WILL ALWAYS BE AVAILABLE;
• THE PLATFORM WILL BE ERROR-FREE OR SECURE;
• CONTENT WILL BE PRESERVED;
• CONTENT WILL BE ACCURATE, COMPLETE, LAWFUL, SAFE, OR NON-INFRINGING;
• RECOMMENDATIONS OR RANKINGS WILL BE ACCURATE;
• A CREATOR WILL EARN ANY PARTICULAR AMOUNT;
• A WORK WILL RECEIVE ANY PARTICULAR NUMBER OF READERS;
• PURCHASED OR SUBSCRIPTION CONTENT WILL ALWAYS REMAIN AVAILABLE; OR
• THE PLATFORM WILL SUPPORT EVERY DEVICE, FORMAT, REGION, OR FUTURE TECHNOLOGY.

Nothing in these Terms excludes warranties or rights that cannot legally be excluded.

19. User disputes

Interactions and disputes between Users, including Creator/buyer disputes, are primarily between the parties involved.

Drift & Quill may provide reporting, payment, moderation, or dispute tools but does not promise to mediate every dispute or act as an arbitrator, attorney, escrow agent, or guarantor.

20. Limitation of liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, DRIFT & QUILL AND ITS OWNERS, MEMBERS, MANAGERS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, CONTRACTORS, AFFILIATES, LICENSORS, AND SERVICE PROVIDERS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR LOST PROFITS, REVENUE, BUSINESS, GOODWILL, OPPORTUNITY, OR DATA, ARISING FROM OR RELATED TO THE PLATFORM, CONTENT, TRANSACTIONS, OR THESE TERMS.

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, DRIFT & QUILL'S TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY FOR CLAIMS ARISING FROM OR RELATED TO THE PLATFORM OR THESE TERMS WILL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF:

1. THE AMOUNTS YOU ACTUALLY PAID DIRECTLY TO DRIFT & QUILL FOR THE SPECIFIC SERVICE GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM DURING THE THREE (3) MONTHS BEFORE THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM; OR
2. US\$100.

For Creator claims concerning monetization, the limitation applies separately to the extent permitted by law and does not guarantee any payout or revenue.

Nothing in this section limits liability that cannot lawfully be limited, including liability that applicable law expressly makes non-waivable.

21. Indemnification

# Creator-specific indemnification

Without limiting the general indemnification obligation, each Creator agrees to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Drift & Quill and its owners, members, managers, officers, employees, contractors, affiliates, service providers, payment providers, and agents from claims, demands, investigations, proceedings, losses, liabilities, damages, penalties, judgments, settlements, costs, and reasonable attorneys' fees arising from or relating to:

• the Creator's Content;
• any allegation that Creator Content infringes, misappropriates, violates, or unlawfully uses another person's rights;
• the Creator's failure to obtain required licenses, permissions, releases, consents, or other rights;
• the Creator's products, listings, descriptions, representations, pricing, or transactions;
• the Creator's status or activities as an independent merchant;
• the Creator's taxes, registrations, or regulatory obligations;
• consumer claims concerning a Creator transaction;
• refunds, chargebacks, payment reversals, or disputes attributable to the Creator or the Creator's transaction;
• the Creator's breach of Stripe or other payment-provider requirements;
• the Creator's violation of law or Platform Policies; or
• the Creator's fraud, negligence, willful misconduct, or unauthorized use of another person's rights.

Drift & Quill may participate in the defense of an indemnified claim with counsel of its choosing. The Creator may not settle an indemnified claim in a manner that admits fault by, imposes an obligation on, or restricts the rights of Drift & Quill without Drift & Quill's prior written consent.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, you agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Drift & Quill and its owners, members, managers, officers, employees, contractors, affiliates, licensors, and service providers from claims, losses, liabilities, damages, judgments, penalties, costs, and reasonable attorneys' fees arising out of or related to:

• your Content;
• your conduct;
• your use or misuse of the Platform;
• your violation of these Terms or Platform Policies;
• your violation of law or third-party rights;
• your monetization activities;
• your products or listings;
• disputes between you and other Users; or
• your fraud, negligence, or intentional misconduct.

Drift & Quill may assume control of the defense of a matter subject to indemnification. You may not settle a covered claim in a manner that admits fault by or imposes obligations on Drift & Quill without our written consent.

Nothing in this section requires indemnification to the extent prohibited by applicable law.

22. Copyright and other intellectual-property claims

Copyright complaints are handled under the Copyright and DMCA Policy.

Drift & Quill may take voluntary action beyond minimum legal requirements to protect rights holders, Users, or the Platform.

23. Dispute resolution --- required pre-arbitration notice

Before starting arbitration or litigation, the complaining party must send a written Notice of Dispute describing:

• the claimant's name and account identifier, if applicable;
• the facts and legal basis of the dispute;
• the relief requested; and
• a good-faith calculation of any monetary amount claimed.

For notices to Drift & Quill, use the current legal notice address or support channel published by Drift & Quill.

The parties will attempt in good faith to resolve the dispute for at least thirty (30) days after receipt of a complete Notice of Dispute, unless applicable law permits a shorter period or emergency injunctive relief is reasonably necessary.

24. Individual arbitration

To the maximum extent permitted by law, after the required informal resolution period, disputes between you and Drift & Quill arising out of or relating to the Platform or these Terms will be resolved by binding individual arbitration rather than in court.

The Federal Arbitration Act governs the interpretation and enforcement of this arbitration provision to the fullest extent permitted by law.

The arbitration will be administered by a nationally recognized arbitration provider under its applicable consumer or commercial rules, as appropriate to the dispute. If Drift & Quill identifies a provider in the checkout flow, applicable policy, or Notice of Dispute instructions, that provider's rules will apply.

The arbitrator may award the same individual remedies that a court could award under applicable law, subject to these Terms.

25. Class-action and representative-action waiver

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, YOU AND DRIFT & QUILL AGREE THAT EACH MAY BRING CLAIMS AGAINST THE OTHER ONLY IN AN INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY AND NOT AS A PLAINTIFF OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY PURPORTED CLASS, COLLECTIVE, MASS, CONSOLIDATED, OR REPRESENTATIVE PROCEEDING.

The arbitrator may not award relief to anyone other than the individual party seeking relief.

If applicable law makes this waiver unenforceable for a particular claim, that claim will proceed only to the extent required by law, and the remainder of the arbitration agreement will remain effective where legally permitted.

26. Small claims

Where eligible under applicable law, either party may bring an individual claim in small-claims court instead of arbitration, provided the claim remains within that court's jurisdiction and is brought on an individual basis.

27. Intellectual-property and emergency relief

Nothing in these Terms prevents either party from seeking temporary, preliminary, or permanent injunctive relief in a court of competent jurisdiction where necessary to protect intellectual property, confidential information, security, or prevent unauthorized access or misuse.

28. Governing law and venue

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of New Jersey and applicable federal law of the United States, without regard to conflict-of-law rules, except to the extent mandatory law in your jurisdiction requires otherwise.

For matters that are legally permitted to proceed in court, and subject to the arbitration and small-claims provisions, the parties consent to the personal jurisdiction and venue of the state and federal courts located in New Jersey.

29. Electronic communications and signatures

You consent to receive agreements, notices, disclosures, transaction records, and other communications electronically.

Electronic acceptance, checkbox acceptance, account creation, purchase confirmation, or continued use after an effective update may constitute electronic assent where permitted by law.

Drift & Quill may retain records of acceptance and transaction activity.

30. Assignment

You may not assign or transfer your rights or obligations under these Terms without Drift & Quill's prior written consent, except where non-waivable law provides otherwise.

Drift & Quill may assign these Terms, in whole or in part, in connection with a merger, acquisition, financing, reorganization, sale of assets, corporate restructuring, or transfer of the Platform.

31. Severability

If any provision is held unenforceable, it will be modified or severed to the minimum extent necessary, and the remaining provisions will remain in effect.

32. No waiver

Failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver of the right to enforce it later.

33. Force majeure

Drift & Quill is not responsible for delay or failure caused by circumstances beyond its reasonable control, including outages, infrastructure failures, cyber incidents, internet failures, natural disasters, war, terrorism, labor disruptions, governmental action, payment-network failures, or third-party service interruptions.

34. Entire agreement

These Terms and the policies incorporated by reference constitute the agreement between you and Drift & Quill concerning the Platform, except for separate written agreements expressly entered into by Drift & Quill.

35. Changes to Terms

We may update these Terms and Platform Policies.

For material changes, we may provide notice through the Platform, email, account notice, or another reasonable method where practical.

The effective date will be stated in the updated policy.

Your continued use after the effective date constitutes acceptance only to the extent permitted by law.

If you do not agree with a material change, your remedy is to stop using the affected Platform services and cancel applicable subscriptions before the change takes effect, subject to any rights that cannot be waived.

36. Contact

Legal, copyright, privacy, billing, and support contacts must be kept current on the live Platform.

**Legal notices:** \[INSERT LEGAL NOTICE CONTACT\]\ **DMCA Portal:** `/terms/copyright-dmca`\ **DMCA Email:** `dmca@driftandquill.com`\ **Privacy:** \[INSERT PRIVACY CONTACT\]\ **Support:** \[INSERT SUPPORT CHANNEL\]