Community Guidelines

A Home for Writers

Apoet is a place for poets, storytellers, and readers to share their hearts. These Community Guidelines describe how we treat each other here. Where the Content Policy says what can be published, these Guidelines say how we behave.

Read them, take them to heart, and help us keep this place worth coming back to.

Our Values

• Honesty — write what is true to you, credit what isn't yours
• Kindness — every poem you read was written by a person
• Curiosity — read widely, follow voices unlike your own
• Care — speak gently about heavy topics, especially mental health
• Craft — celebrate effort, encourage growth, welcome beginners

1. Respect Every Voice

Apoet is read by people from every background, age, faith, identity, and corner of the world. Disagreement is welcome; cruelty is not.

• Critique the writing, not the writer
• No slurs, dehumanising language, or pile-ons
• No mocking accents, broken grammar, or non-native English — many of our writers are writing in a second or third language
• If a piece isn't for you, scroll on; you don't have to engage

2. Give Real Feedback

A great writing community is built on thoughtful response. When you comment:

• Be specific — name the line, image, or rhythm that moved you
• Offer suggestions as gifts, not as corrections
• Ask before giving deep critique on someone's personal work
• Don't use comments to promote your own profile or content

3. Care for Heavy Topics

Poetry often comes from the hardest places. If you write about grief, mental illness, self-harm, abuse, or trauma:

• Add a content warning at the top of the piece
• Avoid romanticising or glorifying harm
• Where possible, signpost help (e.g., a crisis line in your country)

If you read something that worries you about a writer's safety, please report it — we will reach out and offer resources.

4. Protect Privacy

• Don't share another person's private details — name, address, phone, workplace, real identity behind a pen name
• Don't screenshot and share private DMs without consent
• Don't identify victims of crime, assault, or abuse
• If your work is about a real person, consider what they would feel reading it

5. Be Authentic

We want real writers connecting with real readers.

• One person, one main account — sock-puppet networks are not allowed
• Don't buy, sell, or trade likes, followers, or comments
• Don't coordinate engagement boosts or comment-for-comment rings
• Don't impersonate other writers, public figures, or Apoet staff
• Disclose AI-assisted work (see Content Policy §3)

6. Gifts & Coins

Gifts are a way to say thank you. They aren't a transaction.

• Don't demand or pressure others for gifts in exchange for follows, comments, or attention
• Don't threaten to send or withhold gifts as a way to manipulate someone
• Don't use gift messages to harass — the message field is held to the same standard as comments
• Don't buy coins on stolen cards, exploit refund flows, or use coins purchased fraudulently — see Terms §9

7. Direct Messages

• DMs are not open invitations — respect when someone doesn't reply
• No unsolicited explicit content, ever
• No commercial pitching, MLM recruitment, or off-platform promotion
• Block and report — both tools are there for you, please use them

8. Comment Threads & Discussion

• Stay on-topic — discussions belong under the work that started them
• One reply is enough; if a writer doesn't respond, don't escalate
• Don't bait writers into arguments to drive engagement
• Disagree without dismissing — "I read this differently" is great; "this is trash" is not

9. When Things Go Wrong

If someone violates these Guidelines:

• Block — they can no longer see or message you
• Mute — keep them around without seeing their content
• Report — flag the comment, post, profile, or DM for our moderation team

In urgent safety situations, contact us directly at support@apoet.co.

10. How We Respond

We try to be restorative, not punitive. For first-time or borderline issues, we usually:

1. Send a private warning with the rule that was crossed
2. Hide or remove the specific content
3. Apply a soft ban, which temporarily limits features like posting, commenting, messaging, discovery, or uploads

For severe issues — child safety, threats, doxxing, hate speech, fraud, ban evasion, or repeat violations — we may move straight to suspension or permanent ban. See Content Policy §9 for the full enforcement ladder and ban types.

11. Account Safety

• Use a strong, unique password on the Google account you sign in with
• Never share your account or sign-in codes
• If you think your account was accessed by someone else, contact us immediately
• Apoet staff will never ask for your password, OTP, or payment details

12. A Note on Disagreement

Writers can disagree about craft, taste, and meaning. That's healthy. What's not healthy is using disagreement as cover for personal attacks, brigading, or harassment. Guidelines apply to how you disagree, not that you disagree.

13. Appeals

If you feel a moderation decision was wrong, appeal through Settings > Appeal a Decision, or write to support@apoet.co. We read every appeal.

14. Changes

We may update these Guidelines as the community grows. The "Last updated" date above shows when it last changed.