Terms of Service

Who these Terms cover

Heldearly has three kinds of users:

• Account holders sign up on our website, pay for the subscription, and invite storytellers and viewers.
• Storytellers answer our questions by text message. They don't have a web account.
• Viewers read a storyteller's timeline after an account holder adds them.

These Terms apply to all three, except where a section says it's only for account holders.

Eligibility

Account holders and storytellers must be at least 18 years old, and account holders must also be able to enter into a binding contract. Viewers must be at least 13, and an account holder may add a viewer under 18 only with permission from the viewer's parent or guardian. By using the service, you confirm that you meet these requirements.

The service

Heldearly texts a storyteller one question every few days, and they can answer by text, voice note, photo, or video whenever they like. With the help of AI, we turn their answers into short written stories, sometimes with an illustration. A person on our team reviews each story before we publish it to a private timeline that the account holder and their viewers can read.

Heldearly is for personal and family use.

Accounts and sign-in

Account holders and viewers sign in with a code we text to their phone. Account holders who signed up with an email address can still sign in with a code we email them. Storytellers never sign in. They use Heldearly only through their text conversation with us.

You agree to give us accurate information and to keep it up to date. You are responsible for keeping your email account and phone secure, and for activity that happens through them.

Inviting storytellers and viewers

If you're an account holder:

• Only invite someone who wants to take part. Nothing is sent to them until they choose to send us the first text themselves.
• Share each invitation link only with the person it's for. Anyone who opens it can send the first text and start the conversation.
• Only add viewers the storyteller would be comfortable sharing their stories with, and only give us phone numbers you're allowed to share.
• You can remove a viewer or a storyteller at any time from your dashboard.

Text messages

By sending the first text from an invitation, a storyteller agrees to receive our questions and replies by text message, roughly every few days. Message and data rates may apply.

A storyteller can text STOP at any time and we'll stop sending messages, and can text START to begin again. For a shorter break, they can text something like "pause for two weeks" and text RESUME to come back early. When a storyteller texts STOP, we let the account holder know. The account holder can also remove a storyteller from their dashboard at any time.

We only send questions while the account holder's subscription is active.

Subscription and billing

Heldearly is a paid subscription for account holders. Storytellers and viewers never pay. There is no free trial, and your payment method is charged when you subscribe.

Subscriptions renew automatically each billing period until you cancel. Payments are processed by Stripe. The plan is $9.89 a month or $98.90 a year, and includes up to two storytellers.

We may change our prices; if we do, we will give you notice before the change applies to you.

Refunds

We offer a 30-day full refund on your first paid purchase. See our Refund Policy at heldearly.com/refund-policy for the details and how to request one.

Cancellation

You can cancel any time from Manage billing on your dashboard. When you cancel, the subscription stays active until the end of the current billing period, and you will not be charged again.

When the subscription ends, we stop sending questions. Published stories stay on the timeline unless you delete your account.

Deleting your account

You can delete your account from your dashboard. The deletion happens 7 days later, and you can cancel it until then. When it happens, we cancel your subscription and permanently delete your account, your storytellers, and their stories, photos, and recordings. This can't be undone, and deleting your account doesn't give you a refund on its own (see our Refund Policy).

You can also permanently remove a single storyteller at any time, which takes effect right away.

Acceptable use

By using Heldearly, you agree to keep the conversation lawful and respectful. You will not:

• Use the service for any illegal purpose or to send unlawful, abusive, harassing, or infringing content.
• Invite or add someone without their permission, impersonate someone else, or use a phone number you are not authorized to use.
• Send photos, recordings, or other content you don't have the right to share.
• Attempt to disrupt, reverse-engineer, scrape, or overload the service or access it through automated means.
• Use the service to harm yourself or others. If you are in crisis, see the note below.

Content and ownership

Storytellers own the messages, voice notes, photos, and videos they send us. By sending them, a storyteller gives Lntrns LLC a limited, non-exclusive license to store and process that content to run the service, including to write stories and create illustrations from it and to show them to the account holder and the viewers they add.

The stories and illustrations we create from a storyteller's answers are for the family's personal use. The account holder and viewers may read and keep them for personal, non-commercial use. We handle all of this content as described in our Privacy Policy.

Stories are written with AI

AI writes the stories and draws the illustrations from a storyteller's answers, and our team reviews them, but they can still get details wrong, such as names, dates, or places. Heldearly's questions and stories are for personal reflection and family keepsakes. They are not professional, medical, psychological, legal, or financial advice, and you should not rely on them as such.

Heldearly is not a crisis or emergency service. If you are in distress or thinking about harming yourself, contact your local emergency number or, in the US, call or text 988 (the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline).

Our intellectual property

The Heldearly name, brand, software, and the design of the timeline and stories (apart from the content storytellers send us) belong to Lntrns LLC and are protected by law. You may not copy or reuse them without our permission.

Disclaimers

Heldearly is provided "as is" and "as available," without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied. We do not warrant that the service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or that it will meet your expectations.

Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Lntrns LLC will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or any loss of data or goodwill, arising from your use of Heldearly. Our total liability for any claim relating to the service will not exceed the amount you paid us in the 12 months before the claim.

Termination

You may stop using Heldearly at any time. We may suspend or terminate your access if you violate these Terms or if we need to for legal, security, or operational reasons. Sections that by their nature should survive termination, such as intellectual property, disclaimers, and limitation of liability, will continue to apply.

Governing law and disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Wyoming, United States, without regard to its conflict-of-laws rules. Any dispute will be resolved in the state or federal courts located in Wyoming, unless applicable law provides otherwise.

Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will revise the date at the top of this page and, for significant changes, let you know directly. Continuing to use Heldearly after a change means you accept the updated Terms.

Contact us

Questions about these Terms? Email hello@heldearly.com. Heldearly is operated by Lntrns LLC.