Community Rules
Last updated
This page is outside the story. These rules apply to everything members write or make here: posts in the Dining Room and the Margins, World Files and Statements, theories, art, fan worlds, display names and listings.
They are short on purpose. If something is not covered, the question is whether it makes this a worse place for someone else.
The spirit of it
Argue with ideas, never with people. Disagree as much as you like: criticism of the book, the author and this project is welcome, and we never remove anything for being critical.
There are no private messages here, no follower counts and no rankings of people. Conversations happen in the open, in order, so everyone can see what was said.
Be kind: no harassment, bullying or threats
No insults aimed at a person, no piling on, no threats, no wishing harm on anyone, no following someone from room to room. If someone asks you to stop, stop.
If you would not say it to their face at a table with twenty other guests, do not say it here.
No hatred against anyone for who they are
Nothing that attacks or demeans people for their race, ethnicity, nationality, religion or belief, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation or age. Slurs are blocked automatically.
No sexual content involving anyone under 18, ever
None, in words or images, real or drawn or imagined. We remove it at once, close the account and report it to the authorities as the law requires (the National Crime Agency in the UK, NCMEC in the US).
No terrorist content or support for proscribed groups
Nothing that supports, praises or recruits for a terrorist or proscribed organisation, and no instructions for violence. The book’s rebellions are fiction; keep them there.
No intimate images of anyone without their consent
Never share, or threaten to share, intimate images of anyone without their consent, including fakes. If it has happened to you, report it and we will act within 12 hours. StopNCII.org can help stop it spreading elsewhere.
Nothing that encourages suicide, self-harm or eating disorders
You can talk about hard things here, including your own. What is not allowed is encouraging anyone to hurt themselves, or sharing methods.
If you write something that suggests you are at risk, a person will read it and may hide it from others while they check you are all right. That is not a punishment. Help lines are always one tap away at Safety and help.
Keep personal details private, yours and other people’s
No real names, addresses, schools, workplaces, phone numbers, photos or social-media handles of other people, and think twice about your own. There are no private messages here, so we hold back posts that try to move a conversation somewhere private until a person has read them.
Fans in some countries take real risks by being here. Never try to work out who someone is.
Don’t pretend to be staff, the Bureau, a character or another person
Play is welcome; deceiving is not. Don’t claim to speak for the site, the author, DREAM or any character, and don’t use the story to frighten, pressure or recruit anyone. Nobody official will ever message you first, ask for money or ask for your password.
Mark spoilers with their chapter
Rooms open with the chapter you have read. If you post about a later chapter, mark the post with that chapter so it stays hidden from readers who have not reached it.
No spam, advertising or selling outside the marketplace
No adverts, referral links, repeated posts or selling. Fans can sell their work in the marketplace once it opens, under its own terms.
Only post what you have the right to share
Post your own work, or short quotations with credit. Don’t post whole chapters of the book, other people’s art without permission, or pirated material. Fan works are welcome under the Open Door Policy.
Art, voices and writing you submit must be made by people
Anything you submit as art, a translation, a World File or a Statement must be your own work, not generated by AI. No voice clones of anyone, ever.
Accounts are for people aged 16 and over
Members aged 16 or 17 have extra protections: a moderator reads their posts for their first 30 days, and posting pauses between 10pm and 7am their time. Paid work, selling and prizes are for adults only.
Nothing illegal
Nothing that breaks the law where you are or in the UK, including fraud, the sale of illegal goods and incitement to crime.
What happens if a rule is broken
- Most of the time, a person removes the post and tells you which rule it broke and why. That is all.
- A strike may be added for a serious or repeated breach. Strikes expire after six months.
- Repeated or severe breaches can lead to a suspension (1, 7 or 30 days) or, rarely, closing an account to posting for good.
- Removals, suspensions and closures always need two people to agree. Automatic tools can only flag something for a person; they never decide.
Every decision comes with a plain statement of what we did, which rule, what we found and how to appeal. You can appeal any decision within six months on Form AP-1, and someone who took no part will decide within 7 days. See how moderation works.