Contest rules
Last updated: May 2026
These rules apply to every contest run on OutaStory. Each individual contest may add specific topic, theme, or prize rules on its landing page; nothing on a contest landing overrides these baseline rules.
§1 Eligibility
Anyone with an OutaStory writer account in good standing may enter. Writers must be 12 years or older. Writers under 18 need a parent's or legal guardian's written consent on file before a prize can be paid out; OutaStory will request this when a winner is announced. OutaStory employees and members of the jury for that specific contest are not eligible to win that contest.
§2 How to enter
Publish a story on OutaStory and tag it with the contest's tag. The tag is announced on the contest's landing page. Stories must be published — drafts do not count — before the contest's end date. Multiple entries per writer are allowed unless the contest's landing page says otherwise.
§3 Original work and rights
Entries must be the writer's original work and must not infringe anyone else's copyright. Generative-AI assistance is allowed in line with the OutaStory AI guidelines (/legal/ai-guidelines); the writer remains the legally responsible author. Submitting an entry grants OutaStory a non-exclusive licence to feature it in newsletters, social media, and on the contest landing page for promotion of the contest. The writer keeps all other rights to the story.
§4 Content limits
Standard OutaStory content rules apply: nothing illegal, no hate speech, no sexualised content involving minors, no doxxing, no advocating violence against real people. Each entry must carry an honest age rating; entries with mismatched ratings (e.g. 18+ content posted under a 12+ rating) are disqualified.
§5 Judging
Each contest's landing page states which winning criterion applies — most likes, most reads, jury choice, or a hybrid. For jury contests, jurors are listed on the landing page with name, photo, and a short bio. Jurors recuse themselves from any entry where they have a personal or professional conflict; conflicts are disclosed on the landing page when known. Like / view counts used for audience-judged contests are taken at the moment the contest ends.
§6 Disqualification
OutaStory may disqualify an entry that breaks these rules or the standard content rules, that uses fake or coordinated engagement (vote brigading, bot likes), or that misrepresents authorship. Disqualification is final at OutaStory's reasonable discretion; we will tell the writer the reason.
§7 Prizes
Prizes are described on each contest's landing page. Cash prizes are paid via the writer's existing OutaStory payout method (Stripe Connect) within 30 days of the announcement, after any required age-of-consent or tax paperwork is on file. Non-cash prizes ship within 60 days. Prizes are personal — they cannot be transferred or exchanged for cash unless the contest landing page explicitly allows it.
§8 Cancellation and changes
OutaStory may extend a contest's deadline or cancel a contest if technical, legal, or force-majeure reasons require it. If a contest is cancelled before any winner is announced, no prize is owed. Already-announced winners keep their prize.
§9 Privacy
Names of winners may be published on the contest landing page and in OutaStory communications. Other personal data (email, address for prize shipping, payout details) stays internal and is processed under the OutaStory privacy policy (/legal/privacy). Writers can ask for their name to be redacted to a pen name they already use on the platform.
§10 Governing law
These contest rules are governed by German law, without prejudice to mandatory consumer-protection rules in the writer's country of residence. Disputes go through the same channels described in the OutaStory terms of service (/legal/terms).