This Privacy Policy explains how Michael Benko, doing business as Whimsy Ink ("Whimsy," "we," "us"), collects, uses, and protects your information when you use Whimsy Ink ("the Service"). By using the Service, you agree to this Policy.
1. Information We Collect
Information you provide:
- Account information: name, email address, date of birth
- Payment information: processed and stored by Stripe. We never store your credit card number, CVV, or full payment details on our servers.
- Content you create: novel prompts, generated novels, edits, and any content you publish to the library
- Communications: messages you send to our support team
Information collected automatically:
- Device information: browser type, operating system, device type
- Usage data: pages viewed, features used, reading history, generation history, time spent reading
- Log data: IP address, access times, referring URLs
- Cookies: essential cookies for authentication and session management
2. How We Use Your Information
We use your information to:
- Provide and operate the Service
- Process payments and manage your subscription
- Generate novels based on your prompts
- Display your published content in the library
- Enforce our Terms of Service and Content Policy
- Moderate content for policy compliance
- Improve the Service and develop new features
- Communicate with you about your account, updates, or support requests
- Send you product updates, new feature announcements, novel recommendations, and other promotional communications related to the Service. You may unsubscribe from these at any time using the link in any email or through your account settings.
- Protect against fraud, abuse, and unauthorized access
3. What We Share
We never sell your personal data.
We share information only in these circumstances:
- Stripe: Payment processing. Stripe's privacy policy governs their handling of your payment data.
- Hosting providers: Our infrastructure providers store and transmit data as necessary to operate the Service. They are contractually bound to protect your information.
- Legal requirements: We may disclose information if required by law, subpoena, court order, or government request.
- Safety: We may disclose information if we believe it is necessary to prevent harm, fraud, or violations of our Terms.
- Business transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you of any such change.
4. Content Ownership & Retention
You own 100% of every novel you create. Whimsy claims no royalty, no revenue share, and no ownership interest in your work. Generated content is nonetheless treated differently from personal data — not because of any ownership claim, but because of the platform license you grant in Section 5 of the Terms of Service:
- Generated novels, original prompts, creation dates, and creator identity are retained under that license so we can operate the platform — host and display published work, maintain publication and moderation history, and attribute each novel to its author.
- Personal data (email, payment information) may be deleted upon request.
See our Terms of Service (Section 5) and our Data Retention & Deletion policy for full details.
5. Your Rights
All users:
- Access your personal data by contacting us
- Correct inaccurate personal data
- Request deletion of personal data (subject to the retention exceptions in Section 4)
- Export your novels at any time while your account is active
- Opt out of promotional emails at any time via the unsubscribe link in any email or by contacting privacy@trywhimsy.com. Transactional emails (account security, billing, service changes) are not affected by unsubscribe requests.
California residents (CCPA):
- Right to know what personal information we collect and how it's used
- Right to request deletion of personal information (subject to retention exceptions)
- Right to opt out of the sale of personal information. We do not sell personal information.
- Right to non-discrimination for exercising your privacy rights
EU/EEA residents (GDPR):
- All rights listed above, plus:
- Right to data portability
- Right to restrict processing
- Right to object to processing
- Right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority
- Legal basis for processing: contract performance (providing the Service), legitimate interest (enforcing IP rights, improving the Service, preventing fraud), and consent (where applicable)
- Retention of generated content and creator identity is justified under GDPR Article 17(3)(e) — processing necessary for the establishment, exercise, or defense of legal claims
6. Cookies
We use cookies for:
- Essential: Authentication, session management, security. Required for the Service to function. Cannot be disabled.
- Analytics: Understanding how the Service is used to improve it. Can be disabled.
We do not use advertising cookies or tracking cookies. We do not serve ads.
7. Children's Privacy
The Service is limited to users aged 18 or older (or the age of legal majority in their jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. If we learn that we have collected information from a person under 18, we will delete it promptly. If you believe a minor has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately.
8. Data Security
We implement commercially reasonable security measures to protect your information, including encryption of data in transit and at rest, secure authentication, and access controls. No method of electronic storage or transmission is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security, but we take reasonable steps to protect your information.
9. Data Breach Notification
In the event of a data breach affecting your personal information, we will notify affected users as required by applicable law. Notification will include the nature of the breach, the data affected, and steps we are taking in response.
10. International Data Transfers
The Service is operated from the United States. If you access the Service from outside the United States, your information may be transferred to and processed in the United States. By using the Service, you consent to this transfer. We take reasonable steps to ensure your information is protected in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
11. Third-Party Links
The Service may contain links to third-party websites or services. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those third parties. We encourage you to read their privacy policies.
12. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy at any time. We will notify you of material changes. Continued use of the Service after changes constitutes acceptance. The "Last updated" date at the top reflects the most recent revision.
13. Contact
Questions about this Privacy Policy or your data? Contact us at privacy@trywhimsy.com.