Author & Seller Agreement

To list content for sale or distribution, you must:

(a) Be at least 18 years of age and have full legal capacity to enter into binding agreements;

(b) Create and complete onboarding for your own Stripe Connect Standard account directly with Stripe, Inc. — this includes Know-Your-Customer (KYC) verification by Stripe, collection of relevant tax forms (W-9 for U.S. authors, W-8BEN for non-U.S. authors), and bank account verification;

(c) Not be located in a country subject to U.S. trade sanctions or Stripe's prohibited list;

(d) Maintain accurate account and tax information at all times.

IVI CREATIVE AGENCY LLC does NOT verify your identity directly; this is performed by Stripe under their applicable processes. We rely on Stripe's verification as a prerequisite to enabling priced listings.

Category A — Your Own Original Work (Priced): Manuscripts, books, essays, novellas, short stories, poetry, non-fiction, screenplays, illustrated works, and similar original literary or artistic creations of your own authorship. These are sold at a price you set.

Category B — Third-Party Material (Free Distribution Only): Curated content not authored by you but which you have the right to redistribute, in one of three sub-categories — Public Domain works, Creative Commons licensed works (compatible licenses only), or works with documented written permission from the rights holder. Distributed exclusively free of charge. See the Upload & Publishing Agreement for complete rules.

Voluntary tipping by readers to you, via your Stripe Connect account, is permitted for Category B works in recognition of your curatorial/editorial labor — NOT as compensation for the underlying third-party work.

By listing content for sale or distribution, you represent and warrant that:

(a) For Category A: you are the sole original author and copyright owner of the work, or you hold all necessary licenses to publish and sell it on the Platform;

(b) The work does not infringe any copyright, trademark, trade secret, right of publicity, right to privacy, or other intellectual property or personality right of any third party;

(c) The work is not plagiarized; any quoted or referenced material is used within the bounds of fair use under 17 U.S.C. § 107 with appropriate attribution;

(d) AI-generated or AI-assisted elements are disclosed clearly in the listing description, as required by the Copyright & DMCA Policy;

(e) You have the right to grant buyers/downloaders the license described in Section 5;

(f) For Category B: you have valid grounds (public domain status, Creative Commons license, or written permission) and have provided required documentation at upload.

INDEMNIFICATION: If any warranty proves false, or you breach this Agreement in any other material respect, you agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless IVI CREATIVE AGENCY LLC, its directors, officers, employees, agents, and affiliates from and against any claims, damages, costs, expenses, and reasonable attorneys' fees arising from your breach or false declaration. This obligation survives termination.

By default, all listings are non-exclusive. You may sell the same work on other platforms simultaneously, except for listings explicitly marked as "exclusive."

For exclusive listings: you represent that the work is not currently listed or available for purchase on any other platform, and you agree not to list it elsewhere while it remains active on Scriptorium.works. Exclusivity can be terminated by you with 30 days' notice.

When a buyer purchases your Category A work, or downloads your Category B distribution, they receive a personal, non-transferable, non-exclusive license to:

(a) Read, view, and privately enjoy the work;

(b) Store one personal backup copy on devices they own or control.

Unless you explicitly specify otherwise in the listing, buyers/downloaders do NOT receive the right to:

(a) Republish, distribute, resell, or share the work with others;

(b) Adapt, translate, or create derivative works;

(c) Use the work commercially beyond personal reading;

(d) Remove copyright notices, attribution, or watermarks.

If you offer commercial licenses (e.g., translation rights, publishing rights, screen rights), you must clearly specify the scope in the listing description.

COMMERCIAL MODEL FOR CATEGORY A (Priced) WORKS:

(a) You set the price for each work in U.S. dollars. The Platform may display converted prices in other currencies for readers as a convenience, but settlement occurs in USD via Stripe.

(b) For each sale, the buyer's payment is processed by Stripe directly into YOUR Stripe Connect account.

(c) Stripe automatically transfers ten percent (10%) (the "Application Fee") to IVI CREATIVE AGENCY LLC.

(d) The remaining ninety percent (90%), less standard Stripe processing fees (currently 2.9% + $0.30 for U.S. cards, 3.9% + $0.30 for international cards, subject to Stripe's pricing changes), is credited to your Stripe Connect balance.

(e) Stripe handles payouts to your bank on the schedule you configure in your Stripe Connect account.

(f) IVI CREATIVE AGENCY LLC does NOT hold or control your funds. We do not handle escrow, refunds, or payouts for Category A works directly — these are Stripe's functions in your Stripe Connect account.

COMMERCIAL MODEL FOR CATEGORY B (Free) WORKS:

(a) The work is distributed free. No purchase price.

(b) Readers may leave voluntary tips via your Stripe Connect account in recognition of your curatorial effort. Tips are processed identically — Stripe takes its standard fee + 10% Application Fee to the Platform; the rest goes to you.

TAX FORMS AND COMPLIANCE:

Stripe handles all tax form collection and issuance: W-9 for U.S. authors at onboarding; W-8BEN for non-U.S. authors at onboarding; 1099-NEC for U.S. authors who earn more than $600 in a calendar year. IVI CREATIVE AGENCY LLC does NOT issue tax forms, is NOT party to your tax obligations, and is NOT able to provide tax advice. You are solely responsible for declaring and paying any taxes due under applicable law in your country of residence.

Because the Platform transacts in digital files immediately accessible after download, sales are generally final. Refunds are issued only in the limited cases described in the Terms of Service (corrupted file, materially mismatched description, EU consumer 14-day right of withdrawal where applicable).

For Category A works, refunds are processed through Stripe. The refund amount is debited from your Stripe Connect balance; the 10% Application Fee previously transferred to the Platform is also refunded by Stripe (no fee retained by Platform on refunded transactions). Stripe's own fees on the original transaction may or may not be refunded depending on Stripe's current policy.

Disputes over content quality or accuracy must be opened within 7 days of delivery. We may mediate but cannot force payment changes within Stripe; in serious cases of breach we may suspend your account per Section 10.

Authors are prohibited from:

(a) Creating fake accounts to purchase their own listings (wash trading);

(b) Manipulating reviews through coordinated inauthentic feedback;

(c) Conducting transactions off-platform to circumvent the 10% Application Fee, for sales originating on the Platform;

(d) Providing buyers with direct contact information for the purpose of off-platform transactions;

(e) Setting prices on Category B (third-party) works;

(f) Falsely claiming Public Domain status, Creative Commons license type, or Written Permission for Category B uploads;

(g) Misrepresenting authorship, metadata, or content quality (false word count, fabricated reviews, deceptive cover art);

(h) Uploading content in violation of Content Standards (see Upload Agreement, Section 4);

(i) Circumventing the Strikes Policy by creating new accounts after termination.

You may remove your listings at any time through your dashboard. Removal:

(a) Terminates the Platform's license to display the work to new visitors;

(b) Does not affect previously completed transactions — buyers who purchased before removal retain their license;

(c) Does not delete the copyright record if you used the /protect service — timestamped records are permanent;

(d) Does not refund the 10% Application Fees already collected from previous sales;

(e) Does not affect your Stripe Connect balance or payouts already in progress.

We may suspend your author privileges and remove listings if:

(a) A valid DMCA notice is received (per Strikes Policy, Section 8 of Copyright & DMCA Policy);

(b) Your content violates Content Standards;

(c) We detect fraudulent activity, fake reviews, off-platform circumvention, or other prohibited practices;

(d) You accumulate 3 Strikes within a 90-day window (permanent termination);

(e) Stripe restricts or closes your Stripe Connect account (you cannot accept payments without a valid Connect account);

(f) You repeatedly violate the rules for Category B uploads with false declarations.

CONSEQUENCES OF SUSPENSION/TERMINATION:

(a) Existing listings are hidden from public view;

(b) Your Stripe Connect balance remains in your Stripe account (independent of the Platform) — EXCEPT in the case of Strike 3 for copyright violations, where funds may be redirected to the identifiable rights holder pursuant to applicable law and our Copyright Policy;

(c) Pending payouts for completed (non-disputed) orders continue per Stripe's schedule;

(d) Pending payouts for disputed orders may be frozen pending resolution.

We may update this Agreement at any time. For material modifications (e.g., change of Application Fee percentage, change of third-party material rules, change of governing law), we will notify Authors by email at least thirty (30) days before the effective date.

Continued use of the Platform as an Author after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the updated Agreement. If you do not agree to the modifications, you may close your account or withdraw listings before the effective date.

This Agreement is governed by the laws of the State of Ohio and the federal laws of the United States, without regard to conflict-of-laws principles. Disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, USA.

For EU/EEA Authors, mandatory consumer/seller protection provisions of your country of residence may apply notwithstanding this choice-of-law clause.

Author support: [email protected]

Stripe / payout issues: [email protected] (we can help with Platform-side issues; for issues internal to your Stripe Connect account, contact Stripe directly)

Legal: [email protected]

DMCA: [email protected]

Operator: IVI CREATIVE AGENCY LLC