On-Chain Ownership
This is one of Knovel's most important features and also the one most authors will be least familiar with. This section explains what happens when you publish, what rights you control, and how the licensing system works.
What Happens When You Publish
When you publish a book on Knovel, two things happen simultaneously:
Your book becomes visible to readers on the platform
Your book is registered as an IP asset on Story Protocol
The IP asset is an on-chain record that:
Identifies you (via your wallet address) as the creator
Records the publication timestamp
Stores your license terms — what others can and cannot do with your work
Links any derivative works that are later created from your book
This registration is permanent. Even if you unpublish your book from Knovel, or if Knovel as a platform ceased to exist, your on-chain record of authorship remains.
What Is Story Protocol?
Story Protocol is an open blockchain protocol designed specifically for intellectual property. Think of it as a public ledger for creative rights.
When Knovel registers your book on Story Protocol, it calls a smart contract called the SPG NFT contract which creates an NFT representing your IP asset. You don't need to understand the technical details — Knovel handles the transaction. What matters is that the record is public, verifiable, and not controlled by Knovel.
Currently, Knovel operates on the Aeneid testnet — a test network for Story Protocol. This means IP registration is free and the infrastructure is being proven before mainnet launch.
Your IP Asset
After publishing, you can find your IP asset ID on your book's management page in the dashboard. This ID links to the on-chain record on Story Protocol's explorer.
Your IP asset record shows:
Creator wallet address
Registration timestamp
Current license terms
All registered derivative works
Rights You Control
When you publish, you configure three rights settings:
Commercial Use Can others use your work, characters, or world commercially? If enabled, you can set royalty terms for commercial derivative works.
AI Training Can your work be used to train AI models? This is opt-in and off by default.
Remixing / Derivative Works Can readers create fanfiction, translations, and adaptations? If enabled, you choose whether those derivatives can be commercial (with royalty share) or non-commercial only.
License Types
Non-Commercial Social Remixing Allows derivative works (fanfiction, translations, adaptations) for personal, non-commercial use. Derivatives must credit the original. No royalties flow because no commercial activity is permitted.
Best for: Authors who want an active fan community but don't want commercial derivatives.
Commercial Remix (Royalty Share) Allows derivative works including commercial ones. When a derivative work earns revenue, a percentage flows automatically to you as the original author. You set the royalty percentage when configuring your license.
Best for: Authors who want to enable a creator ecosystem around their work and share in the revenue it generates.
All Rights Reserved (default) No derivative works permitted. Standard copyright. Readers can read and review, but cannot create derivative works.
Updating Your Rights After Publishing
You can update your license settings after publishing. Changes take effect on-chain and apply to new derivative works registered after the update. Existing derivative works continue under the license terms that were in place when they were created.
To update:
Go to your dashboard
Open the book
Select Rights & Licensing
Update your settings and click Save & Update On-Chain
Sign the transaction with your wallet
Getting Paid
Royalties from derivative works are handled on-chain. When a derivative work registered under a Commercial Remix license earns revenue, the royalty portion is distributed to the original author's wallet address automatically.
Platform revenue (from readers paying for your work directly) is handled off-chain and paid out through Knovel's payment system. See the FAQ for current payout details.
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