Fiction Factory publishes posts the moment you hit Publish — there is no approval queue to wait in. We do screen every post for spam, though, and our moderators step in when something reads like promotion rather than writing.
The short version
- Your post goes live as soon as you publish it.
- A spam check reads the title and the content, automatically, on every save.
- If it matches, the post is hidden from readers — you can still open it, and the page tells you why and what to do.
- Fix the trigger and save: the check runs again and can clear the flag by itself.
- A moderator can also flag a post, or pause it, by hand.
When a post is hidden from readers
A post stays out of the homepage, its category page, All Posts and the feed while any of these is true:
| State | What it means | Set by |
|---|---|---|
| Flagged as spam | The automatic check matched a signal, or a moderator agreed. | Checker or moderator |
| Paused | A moderator wants a closer look before it goes out. | Moderator |
| Draft | You saved it without publishing. | You |
| Scheduled | It carries a future date. | You |
Open a hidden post and you still see it — faded, with a banner at the top that names the state and your next step.
Why the automatic check flags a post
It reads your title and content and reports the signals it finds. There are three.
The reason printed on your post is the checker's own wording, so you may see Contains an external link or URL, Contains promotional keyword "…" or Contains gibberish or unreadable text.
1. External links and URLs
Links pointing off the site are the most common signal. This includes bare domains and link shorteners:
https://example.com,www.example.com,ftp://…- domain endings such as
.com,.net,.org,.xyz,.ru,.top,.site - shorteners and hosts such as
bit.ly,tinyurl.com,goo.gl,t.me,blogspot
Not flagged: images and media you upload, and internal references to another
post such as /posts/42 or the full URL of a post on this site.
2. Promotional keywords
Phrases that read like an advertisement. The check names the phrase it matched, for example:
free download · download free · premium free · lifetime free · free bonus · sign up · free gift · gift card · youtube premium · free fire · free recharge · bitcoin · crypto · casino · betting · earn money · get rich · click here · buy now · promo code · discount code · airdrop · invest · mining · income · work from home · php script · marketplace script · freelance script
An honest story can mention one of these in passing and still be caught, which is why this is only a first pass — you can edit your post, and a moderator can overrule the check.
3. Gibberish or unreadable text
A long Latin word (15 letters or more) with almost no vowels looks like machine-generated filler. Only Latin-script words are measured, so writing in Bengali — or Arabic, Devanagari, Chinese, Cyrillic, Greek, Hebrew or Thai — is never flagged by this rule, however it is spelled.
What to do when your post is flagged
- Open the post. The banner at the top shows the state — and, for spam, the exact reason.
- Choose Edit post.
- Remove what triggered the check:
- take the outside link out of the post,
- reword a promotional-looking phrase in the title or body,
- rewrite a long, unreadable word.
- Save. The check runs again at once, and a clean post clears its flag on its own.
- If a moderator set the flag, or the check still catches something you believe is fine, ask the moderation team to take another look from the Help Center.
A draft is yours to publish: open the editor, set the status to Published, and save. A scheduled post needs nothing — it goes live on its date.
If a moderator marks your work as spam
The automatic check only hides your work. A moderator's spam flag does more — it reverses what the work earned you:
- Points are removed — the publish award, the points from its upvotes, and the XP from any achievements the work unlocked.
- Achievements are revoked — for example the Helpful / Inspiring / Epic badges when that work's upvotes are what crossed the threshold.
- A 10-point penalty is applied on top.
The same applies when a moderator marks a book or a chapter as spam.
If a moderator later clears the flag, everything is put back exactly as it was — points and badges alike. This only ever comes from a moderator's flag: if the automatic check catches your post, none of your points or badges are touched. Fix the trigger, save, and the flag clears itself.
Keeping posts out of the filter
- Reference other posts on the site with
/posts/{id}instead of pasting an outside link. - Leave sign-up pitches, discount codes, downloads and crypto offers out of your post.
- Write titles that describe the story, not a deal.
- Upload your images — they are never treated as external links.
See also
- Writing Posts — creating, editing and publishing
- Comments — the same checks apply to comments
- Help Center — every guide in one place