Exactly my thoughts😂Sometimes I wonder where episode gets these ideas!
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I really love how no one is off-topic! 
I think the gun rule shouldn’t be there.
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I totally agree with what AMagic said as adult relationships don’t revolve around sex.
Even if Episode wasn’t an PG-13, it would make sense to turn the sex references down several notches.
I haven’t read some of the stories mentioned and I don’t intend to. Because not only they break guidelines but also the MCs who have sex episode yes, episode no are shells.
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Cool for you. Luckily, I don’t think I have a lot of stuff to worry about though
Wow, I can feel the fresh fall cleaning if the romance & drama section already. Although I do feel sorry for people that paid for commissions. It could be acceptable as a special scene though.
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Cute covers like these would definitely make me feel better when I’m in the romance section, glad for that rule.
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Perks of writing an Action Story… 
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Another downside is the awareness stories out their. Some do get explicit, (meaning if I press continue scene and not skip) how will they water it down.
Can’t believe I’ll have to use metaphors again. Sigh
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Good Story BTW You see how he is holding a gun, I feel like that’s what gives the cover the needed detail. 
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Why is your story title correlating to the situation? COinCideNce?
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Wdym?
I’m gonna have to stop you right there ma’am.
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Just to clarify for those of you if episodes ask you if your over the age of 18 ( in the context of them making an 18+ app) in the U.S and you answer yes that is a crime. They wouldnt get into legal troble and it would cover their asses.
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Millions of kids do that every day. Can’t catch em all.
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Why not bump the age app to 15/16+ that rating exist too lol.
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I don’t feel strongly about this one personally, but I don’t think a gun on a cover is necessarily any more violent than a scene within the story using a gun, so it does surprise me a little that they’re restricting it. I mean a 5-year old can walk through a movie theater and see a James Bond movie poster with a gun on it right next to a poster for Minions 2. 
Even as someone who gets uncomfortable with a lot of the sexual content on the app, I don’t particularly mind super sexual covers because they actually help signal which stories probably aren’t for me. 
I guess they’ll have to make new covers for Chain Reaction: Lost and Venomous.
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I love the new guidelines but I have some confusions on somethings. Mainly, because of the two stories I am plotting and working on have some things that slightly lean against the rules. I would like to know if certain things are alright based on the slight info on my two stories. I hadn’t published them yet so they are still at least open for changes but… I’m befuddled and need help.
Story 1: Truth Behind Closed Doors
"3. Nudity / Sexual Content:
a. No depiction of sex (or anything suggesting that sex is occurring at that moment) in any form, including but not limited to, nudity in a sexual context, gyrating bodies, oral sex, or moaning/groaning."
I know… this is a dumb question. I won’t say that I didn’t have any intention to do this a long time ago. BUT, there were two ideas of how I was going to approach this to keep it 13PG before the new changes (including a “skip scene” choice, even though it’s still not close to what has been seen so far).
- My first idea was to use a black background. Two cute overlays of hearts with the characters blushing smiley faces are floating across the screen.
- Second was to use silhouettes in the moonlight from the window.
Must I get rid of these?
"5. Assault, Violence & Torture:"
I didn’t put a specific rule down because I have questions about the “description.” NO WAY am I going to describe the details of those certain things. However, two of my characters in this story have a dark past that they confide in each other within the series. They explain what happened and why they are the way they have become today. It’s like in movies where they don’t describe every single detail, but the general of the issues that makes one more secluded and such. Something that gives deeper incite on the character and why they are them, plus gives off how a character is suppose to react and why they do react that way.
For example: “My mom tried to shoot me years ago. It took my father to fight her off. He tried so hard, loved her to the ends of the earth… unfortunately that end was too soon for the both of them. I had to live in an orphanage for a while. My grandmother rescued me… (and then so on)”
Is something like the example okay or is that stepping over the line?
Lastly: Real places.
I’m not woried about celebrities or anything. There is no need for that in my story, despite it being about entertainment. I’m also good at making up brands and companies specially for episode story use or outside story use.
My deal is the real places? Truth Behind Closed Doors is set in Meguro, Tokyo. Many of the characters are japanese. I do plan on creating my own backgrounds for each setting I have in mind but is it okay to keep the cultural beauty in those backgrounds?
Story 2: Norwich
"1. Story Cards
In addition to all of the below guidelines, the following guidelines apply to story cards:
9. Children under the age of 16 cannot be the focus, including any context of overlays and backgrounds (e.g. a closeup of a child on a swing)"
The main cast in this story revolves around six characters who just so happen to be… in middle school. I wanted to write about a mystery ghost tale. It would most likely fall under the comedic genre though. So, if this is the case, would I be okay with putting those characters on the thumnail or no?
GENERAL:
Story Cards: No guns.
I don’t plan to make a story where this is necessary but it’s more of a public thing for other authors.
Is it possible for this to have exceptions added? Like it might be okay for agent and spy stories or zombie stories? Like they cannot be used to express bad thing or be used in a bad way on the card?
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I said wouldn’t. The point is that they wouldn’t be subjugated to a lawsuits if a minor was to get onto a 18+ story.
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or Taken! Or John Wick etc. and I agree with the stories u mention too.
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