Rated for Everyone
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Know more about the "Age Rating" system?

Age Rating Feature

STARSRITE is trying to make the online publishing experience as easy and as rewarding as possible. One of the unique features STARSRITE has introduced is for writers to rate their own work by age level.

STARSRITE “Age Rating” feature gives readers more insights as to what they will be expecting to encounter and be aware before they start reading a post or chapter.

STARSRITE “Age Rating” system provides 5 labels which can cover most age levels.

Should Literature be Rated as Films and Games

"Books should be rated the same way we rate movies and games." We’ve all heard such comments before. Some complain that stories, poems, books... they all contain themes that should be restricted such as: profanity, sexuality, violence, racism, religious beliefs, drugs... However there is a slippery slope between labeling stories & books and restricting access or censorship. So how do we decide what is appropriate? There are three tools often used for labeling books (1) Lexile measure, (2) star rating and (3) ATOS levels. Most of those tools address the level of reading rather than the content. A maturity or age-rating system hasn’t been developed on a national level and is needed to guide readers – and hopefully can be able to prevent censorship. STARSRITE has tried to develop an easy "Age Rating" feature that emulates the film or gaming industry. These have been around for decades and most of us have grown to recognize them and identify a film or game by the level of profanity, nudity, sexuality or violence it contains. STARSRITE unique "Age Rating" feature is similar to the system adapted by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). We have introduced four simple "Age Rating" labels which writers can use to label their own work themselves.

Everyone

Content generally suitable for all ages. May contain minimal violence and / or infrequent use of mild language.

Teens (13+)

Content generally suitable for teens 13 years and older. May contain mild violence, suggestive themes, and / or infrequent use of strong language.

Mature (17+)

Content generally suitable for 17 years and older. May contain intense violence, mild sexual content, and / or use of strong language.

Adult (18+)

Content generally suitable for 18 years and older. May contain intense violence, explicit sexual content, and / or use of strong language.

Rating Pending

The author did not or has not yet assigned an age rating for this post/chapter.

How Does it Work?

No one is more qualified or more responsible than the authors themselves. Only they can classify which age rating their work falls under. When a writer uploads a post or a chapter the input form gives them the choice to assign an “Age Rating” for their work.

The author has the choice between the 4 labels:

– E for Everyone,

– Teens13+

– Mature17+

– Adult18+

They also have the choice not to label their work if they choose not to. In this case the post or chapter will be labeled as:

-Rating Pending

Please be aware that the “Age Rating” is assigned by the writers themselves and upon the writer’s discretion. Therefore STARSRITE is not responsible nor accountable for the validity of the writer’s designation. However if Starsrite’s editors identify any miss classification, they have the right to re-assign that “Age Rating” as they see appropriate.

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Short Stories Uncategorized

Apostrophe

162

By Atticus Abbey

October 7, 2025

Reading time Less than 1 min.

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I am the ghost of coffee stains and old pages
in books, the echo of frayed threads and knots
in the box of unfinished chapters. The ghost
of the key that once fit the lock, now an
apostrophe.