A Crown is a reader's way of saying, “I read this, and I recommend that more readers discover it.” It is a recommendation, not a star rating, purchase, tip, or permanent popularity score.
Crowns at a glance
- A signed-in reader completes published chapters and earns Reader XP.
- Reader XP determines the reader's level and gives them 2–5 Crowns each week.
- Before Crowning a story, the reader must complete enough of that particular story to qualify.
- Placing a Crown uses one weekly recommendation and contributes one equal unit of support.
- Recent Crowns help stories compete for discovery without becoming a permanent score.
Reader experience changes how many stories someone can recommend, never how much one recommendation weighs. Crowns cannot be bought, transferred, saved up, or given out by an author or administrator.
See exactly how Reader XP, levels, weekly allowances, and story qualification work.
Why Crowns exist
Views naturally favor stories that are already visible. Unlimited likes are easy to give without much thought, while star ratings mix recommendation with criticism. Crowns ask readers to make a small number of intentional choices based on stories they actually read.
That makes a Crown both scarce and meaningful: it says the reader chose this story as one of the few they wanted to help other readers find that week.
How Crowns influence discovery
Crowns do not feed one universal leaderboard. Each discovery area answers a different question.
Most Crowned
Most Crowned shows the stories readers Crowned most during the last 28 days. It reflects broad, current reader support rather than an all-time total.
Ascending
Ascending highlights emerging stories earning unusually strong reader support for the audience they currently have. It compares the share of active qualified readers who became Crown supporters, rather than rewarding raw audience size alone.
Fresh Finds
Recently published stories that are still building an audience rotate through Fresh Finds. Crown totals do not decide which stories appear or how they are ordered; this separate path prevents popularity from becoming the only way a new story can be discovered.
Read the complete rules for Most Crowned, Ascending, and Fresh Finds.
What the Crown number means
The Crown count on a story page shows valid Crown placements during the latest rolling 28 days. It is not a star score, lifetime total, or necessarily a count of unique readers. The same reader may Crown the story again during a later week.
Older Crowns leave the public count so discovery reflects what readers are recommending now. The underlying events remain available privately for moderation and for the author's lifetime analytics.
What authors see
Authors see aggregate Crown totals for the last 28 days and for the story's lifetime. They may also receive one weekly summary showing how many distinct readers Crowned the story during the previous week.
Reader identities are not shown to the author or the public, and authors do not receive a notification for every placement. Crowns provide encouragement without creating supporter pressure or notification spam.
Why Crowns are different
- Reading earns influence. Money and account status cannot buy Crown power.
- Scarcity creates intention. Readers choose a small number of stories each week instead of completing a daily voting chore.
- Every Crown is equal. Experience increases the number of stories a reader can support, not the strength of one vote.
- Discovery stays current. Public Crown influence uses a rolling 28-day window instead of a permanent all-time score.
- Different stories get different paths. Most Crowned measures broad support, Ascending measures emerging momentum, and Fresh Finds protects room for new work.
- Support stays private. Public and author-facing surfaces use aggregate counts rather than exposing a reader's recommendation history.