Choose the story.
Choose how you read.

Yes. The first 3 episodes of every story are free, so you can decide whether you want to keep going.

One Episode Credit unlocks one paid episode permanently. One credit always costs $0.50; there is no shifting token math.

No. When your episode unlocks for one story reach its Story Pass price, Lantern automatically grants you the Story Pass. You will not keep paying chapter by chapter past the full-story price.

A Story Pass permanently unlocks every episode currently published in that story and every future episode added to it. Direct purchases will also include downloadable reading copies when paid reading opens.

The subscription unlocks Lantern’s participating catalog while it is active. It does not convert stories into permanent purchases, but you can buy a Story Pass separately whenever you want to keep one.

Your subscription access continues through the end of the paid billing period. Permanently purchased episodes and Story Passes stay in your library.

Not yet. Lantern is still in private alpha. These are the planned founding prices, published early so readers and writers can understand the model before any charge is taken.

The final digital-purchase and subscription refund terms will be published before checkout opens. No payment button will go live until those terms are visible during checkout.

Yes. Authors retain copyright and grant Lantern only the narrow, nonexclusive permission needed to display and sell their work. Publishing elsewhere remains allowed.

80% of net receipts from Episode Credit redemptions and Story Passes. Net receipts means the reader payment after sales tax, processing fees, refunds, disputes, and chargebacks.

70% of net subscription revenue enters the author pool. Each subscriber’s share is allocated only among authors that subscriber actually reads—not through a platform-wide popularity contest.

Authors choose one of Lantern’s three standard tiers: $4.99, $6.99, or $9.99. The tiers prevent a race to the bottom while leaving room for novellas, novels, epics, and media-rich stories.

After a 30-day reserve for refunds and disputes. Payouts begin at $25.00; smaller balances roll forward rather than disappearing.

Through secure Stripe onboarding and payouts. Authors will see earnings and payout information without giving banking details directly to Lantern moderators.

Fantasy Slayer Publishing records royalty payments and issues required tax reporting. Authors remain responsible for their own income-tax obligations. The exact onboarding documents will be shown before an author accepts paid publication.

Lantern can remove it from new sales. Readers who already purchased episodes or a Story Pass keep the access they paid for, subject to the final publishing agreement.

Yes. The planned Lantern Spotlight is $10.00 for one paired TikTok and Instagram feature, with 60 first-come spots per month. Paid placement will be labeled, will never affect moderation, and does not guarantee sales.

Yes. A moderator-selected story may receive the daily Moderator Pick at no charge. It is editorial discovery, not a popularity ranking or something authors can purchase.

After the opening installment is approved, it appears in your Author Studio. From there you can write or paste the next episode, save it privately, schedule an exact release date and time, publish immediately, see the full queue, and mark the serial complete.

Not during private alpha. Each author may have one actively publishing serial at a time. Finish and mark that story complete before submitting the next, unless a moderator approves a narrow exception. This keeps the shelf from filling with abandoned openings and gives readers a meaningful completion promise.