Hey everyone, Salty Vixen here, owner of salyvixenstories.com. I wanted to share a recent experience that highlights a pervasive issue in the online writing community – the unauthorized copying and submission of stories. It’s a complex problem, and one that I’ve unfortunately encountered firsthand.
Recently, I received an email from a platform called Literorica. They informed me that some stories posted on my site had been taken from their platform. Now, I’ll be honest, I’ve been going through a pretty deep depression lately, and in that state, my usual meticulous research processes slipped. I hadn’t done my due diligence to verify the originality of every submission, and for that oversight, I sincerely apologize. I immediately removed the stories in question, which thankfully weren’t many.
Here’s where it gets complicated, and where I want to shed some light on a double standard I’ve observed. Literorica, while quick to point fingers, has a significant amount of content on its own site where the authors are, in my experience, demonstrably not the original creators. I’ve personally seen stories I wrote back in 1998, originally posted on a forum, reappear on another forum under a new author’s name, only to resurface years later in 2010 on Literorica with yet another new “author.”
This happens all the time. Does it make it right? Absolutely not. But it underscores a fundamental challenge in the digital age. When you have a platform like Literorica, or Salty Vixen, or Lush Stories – these are brands. The website is the brand. The stories themselves, once they hit the internet, become incredibly difficult to control in terms of their true origin. This is why authors publishing on platforms like KDP often face uphill battles when trying to prove ownership against someone who has falsely claimed their work. The same can be said for any online space.
While I always strive to do my research thoroughly and usually get it right, sometimes things get overlooked. And again, I apologize for that oversight. What frustrates me, however, is the disparity in how these situations are handled. My website, salyvixenstories.com, is a labor of love, not a money-making venture. In three years, I’ve made about $46.00 in ad revenue. Literorica, on the other hand, makes thousands each month and the authors who publish there? They make nothing. Literorica, like all story sites out there is a way to escape from the real world, and put your thoughts onto digital paper for others to read.
To then receive a threatening and frankly awful email from them, essentially bullying a smaller, non-profit site like mine, feels incredibly unjust. My plea to larger platforms like Literorica is this: next time, consider being kinder. The person on the other end might not be intentionally stealing content; they might, like me, be navigating a difficult personal period or simply made an honest oversight. A little understanding goes a long way.
Let’s work towards a more supportive and understanding online writing community, rather than one driven by intimidation. It benefits us all in the long run.
And Literorica, I don’t need your site for content. I write my own stories, always have. Like I said, it was an oversight, not a good one, and I fixed it, so please leave me alone and enjoy your thousands you make a month.
