Terms of Service

By using Why Do You Create? ("WDYC," "the service," "we," "us"), you agree to these terms. If you don't agree, please don't use the service.

Eligibility: You must be at least 13 years old to use WDYC. The guide and kindler programs require you to be at least 18.

What the service is: WDYC is a web-based creative exploration experience. It uses AI (powered by Anthropic's Claude) to guide people through reflective journeys about their relationship with creativity. We also offer a guide program for professionals who want to use WDYC with their clients, and a kindler program for running in-person workshops.

The free experience: The core WDYC journey is free to use. No account is required. You can optionally save your journey, sign up for reminders, or join the community — all described in our privacy policy.

Guide program: The guide program is a paid monthly subscription that gives professionals access to a client dashboard, branded resources, and curriculum materials. Access requires approval. Subscription pricing is displayed at the time of signup and is billed monthly through Stripe. We may offer promotional pricing, free trials, or early-access pilot periods at our discretion — the terms of any such offer will be communicated at the time.

Guide data access: As a guide, you can view the reflection from each client's journey — the structured choices they made (such as their creative medium, fears, permissions, and confidence ratings), their personalized manifesto, and what they shared during the experience (commitments, dedications, project details, and any custom answers). You cannot see the letters from their journey (their letter to their past self, and the letter written to them), their raw AI conversation and the private signals drawn from it, or — for returning clients — their private reflection on how their reasons have changed. If a client chooses to share a summary of their conversation (which brings the line they kept from it) or their earliest creative memory with you, you'll see it too, but this is entirely their choice, and they can revoke it at any time. AI-powered session preparation uses the same boundary: it only incorporates data the client has chosen to share. So does a check-in the AI drafts for you to send. As a guide, you agree to treat your clients' journey data with care and not share it outside the professional relationship.

Kindler program: The kindler program is a one-time purchase that grants lifetime access to the kindler dashboard, hosting resources, and Spark Circle creation tools. Access requires approval. Pricing is displayed at the time of purchase. Kindlers see anonymous counts across the circle (such as how many participants chose each fear or medium), never what anyone wrote or who they are; in a small circle, or as people finish, counts can point to a person. If the kindler has turned on shift-tracking and a returning participant chooses to share their previous journey, the kindler also sees that participant's selections from that journey and from the circle.

Trailheads: A Trailhead is a link and a poster for a place, such as a shop, library or studio, that shares the journey with the people who come in. It is free during early access. We haven't set a price yet, and you'll hear from us at least a month before one starts. You can stop anytime. To have one you must be at least 18 and run the place, or have the go-ahead of the people who do, and the name visitors see must be the place's own public name; we check both before we set a Trailhead up. For now Trailheads are for places whose visitors are mostly adults, such as shops, studios, libraries and colleges; schools only by arrangement. During early access a Trailhead counts up to ten finished journeys a day; anyone after that can still take the journey, just without being counted (ask us ahead for an event). You see totals from everyone who finishes through your link, in groups of ten, never anyone's words or who they are. Please don't try to work out who said what, for example by finishing journeys through your own link. We may pause or end a Trailhead that isn't used as described here, and you can ask us to end yours at any time.

Payments and billing: All payments are processed securely through Stripe. We do not store your payment information — it is handled entirely by Stripe. By subscribing or making a purchase, you agree to Stripe's terms of service. Guide subscriptions renew automatically each month until canceled.

Cancellation and refunds: You can cancel your guide subscription at any time through the billing portal in your dashboard. When you cancel, your access continues through the end of your current billing period. If you'd rather stop now and have the unused time refunded, just contact us and we'll take care of it. Kindler purchases are non-refundable, as they grant lifetime access. If you believe a charge was made in error, contact us and we'll make it right.

Your content: Anything you create or share through WDYC — reflections, chat messages, community contributions — belongs to you. By posting community messages, you grant us permission to display them to other users (after review). We don't claim ownership of your content and won't use it for purposes beyond operating the service.

Guide and kindler materials: Curriculum documents, hosting guides, slide decks, and other materials provided through the guide and kindler programs are for your professional use with WDYC. You may use them in sessions with your clients and participants, but please don't redistribute them publicly or resell them independently.

AI-generated content: Parts of the WDYC experience are generated by AI. While we work to make these reflections meaningful and accurate, AI can be imperfect. AI-generated content is not professional therapy, counseling, or medical advice. If you're experiencing a mental health crisis, please reach out to a qualified professional.

Acceptable use: Please use WDYC respectfully. Don't attempt to abuse, reverse-engineer, or overload the service. Don't use the platform to harass others or submit content that's harmful, illegal, or violates others' rights. We reserve the right to suspend access if these terms are violated.

Availability: We do our best to keep WDYC available and reliable, but we can't guarantee uninterrupted access. The service may occasionally be unavailable for maintenance, updates, or reasons beyond our control. We are not liable for any losses resulting from temporary unavailability.

Changes to these terms: We may update these terms from time to time. If we make significant changes, we'll note the date below. Continued use of the service after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated terms.

Changes to the service: We may modify, add, or discontinue features of the service at any time. If we discontinue a paid feature, we'll provide reasonable notice and, where appropriate, prorated refunds for prepaid amounts.

Limitation of liability: WDYC is provided "as is." To the fullest extent permitted by law, we are not liable for indirect, incidental, or consequential damages arising from your use of the service. Our total liability is limited to the amount you've paid us in the 12 months preceding any claim.

Governing law: These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Illinois, United States, without regard to conflict-of-law principles.

Contact: Questions about these terms? Email us. We're happy to clarify anything.

Last updated: October 2026

See also: Privacy