The BookLane Guide
Everything you can do on BookLane, from your first story to your hundredth chapter.
Getting started
BookLane is a reading and writing community. You can use most of the site as a guest to browse stories, read chapters, and explore authors, but creating an account unlocks bookmarks, comments, reading history, your own stories, and level progression.
Creating an account
- Click Sign up in the top right.
- Pick a username (3 characters or more), enter your email and a password (8+ characters), and choose your country.
- Check your inbox for a confirmation email and click the link.
- You're in. Your profile is created automatically when you confirm.
Forgot your password? Use Forgot password on the login page. You'll get a reset link via email.
Reading stories
Browsing the library
Open Browse from the top navigation. You can:
- Search by title, author, or keywords.
- Filter by genre: pick from Romance, Fantasy, Slice of Life, Fanfiction, Mystery, Horror, Sci-Fi, Adventure, Drama, Comedy, Historical, Poetry, True Story, or Others.
- Filter by status: ongoing or completed.
- Sort by recently updated, trending, most popular, or newest.
Reading a chapter
Click any story to open its overview page. From there you can read the prologue or jump to any chapter. The reader shows the chapter title, the author, and a progress indicator. Use the next/previous buttons or the chapter dropdown to move between parts.
Time spent reading is tracked automatically while the tab is in focus, and it counts toward your reader level (see below). You don't need to do anything for it to work.
Bookmarks & library
Tap the bookmark icon on any chapter or story page to save it. Everything you bookmark shows up on your Library page, organised so you can pick up where you left off. Your reading history is saved automatically alongside bookmarks.
Likes, comments, and shares
Show appreciation with the heart icon at the bottom of any chapter. Add a comment to discuss the story with the author and other readers. Use the share button to copy a direct link, or open the system share sheet on mobile.
Writing & publishing
Starting a new story
- Go to Write in the top nav.
- Click New Story.
- Add a title, optional cover image, description, genres, and tags. Tags help readers find your work, so pick three to five that fit.
- Save as a draft, or publish your first chapter when you're ready.
Writing chapters
BookLane's editor is built for long-form fiction. Features include:
- 30 reading-friendly fonts, from classic serif to typewriter to modern sans.
- Bold, italics, headings, blockquotes, and lists.
- Inline images, alignment, and basic typography (smart quotes, em-dashes).
- Live word count and estimated reading time.
- Auto-save while you type, so a closed tab doesn't lose your work.
Chapters can be saved as drafts and published when you're ready. Readers see the chapter immediately after you publish. There is no review queue.
Managing your story
From your story's dashboard (/write/[your-story]) you can:
- See stats: chapter count, published parts, total words, estimated reading time.
- Reorder, rename, or delete chapters.
- Update the cover, description, tags, or genre via Edit Story.
- Mark a story as Ongoing, Completed, or keep as Draft.
- Delete the whole story (with a typed-title confirmation to prevent accidents).
Profile & customisation
Your profile is your home on BookLane. Visit it at /profile/your-username. You can customise:
- Avatar & cover photo: upload images or reposition existing ones.
- Display name & bio: a short intro that appears next to your stories.
- Favourite genres: picked from the same list as Browse; shown publicly.
- Social links: Instagram, Twitter/X, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, Reddit, Tumblr, Wattpad, or Selebox. Paste a URL and BookLane detects the platform; links from other sites aren't accepted.
Profile pages also show your published stories, posts (short updates), comment activity, and follower counts.
Levels & ranks
BookLane has two parallel progression systems: one for reading and one for writing. Each gives your avatar a unique visual ring as you climb.
Reader Level (cover-photo ring)
Earned by spending time reading on BookLane. 1 reading hour = 1 reader XP.
| Level | Reading time |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | 0–29 min |
| Level 2 | 30 min – 9 hrs |
| Level 3 | 10–19 hrs |
| Level 4 | 20–29 hrs |
| Level 5 | 30–39 hrs |
| Level 6 | 40–49 hrs |
| Level 7 | 50–64 hrs |
| Level 8 | 65–79 hrs |
| Level 9 | 80–99 hrs |
| Level 10 | 100+ hrs |
Each new level changes the colour and glow of the ring around your cover photo.
Author Rank (avatar ring)
Earned by publishing stories and chapters. XP is calculated as:
50 XP per published story + 30 XP per chapter + 1 XP per 100 words
| Rank | XP range |
|---|---|
| Wanderer | 0–29 XP |
| Dreamer | 30–99 XP |
| Storyteller | 100–249 XP |
| Novelist | 250–499 XP |
| Lorekeeper | 500–899 XP |
| Starwriter | 900–1,399 XP |
| Storykeeper | 1,400–1,999 XP |
| Mythcrafter | 2,000–2,699 XP |
| Sagewriter | 2,700–3,999 XP |
| Celestial Author | 4,000+ XP |
Want to see what each tier looks like? Visit /level-effects for a live preview of every ring and glow.
Reading & writing streaks
BookLane tracks two daily streaks to reward consistency:
- Reading streak. Read at least one chapter on a given day to keep it going. Missing a day resets the counter to zero, but your longest-ever streak is saved.
- Publishing streak. Publish a new chapter (in any story) on a given day to extend it. Same rules: miss a day, lose the current streak; longest is kept.
Both streaks appear as small flame badges next to your avatar, with a hover tooltip showing your personal best.
Community
Following authors
On any profile, click Follow to be notified when that author publishes new chapters. Your followers and following counts appear on your own profile.
Posts
Posts are short status updates that show on your profile timeline. They are great for sharing chapter teasers, asking readers for input, or thanking your followers. Anyone visiting your profile can read them; only you can post.
Notifications
The bell icon in the navbar collects everything happening with you and your stories: new chapters from authors you follow, comments on your work, new followers, and likes. Open Notifications for the full history.
Settings
Open Settings from your avatar dropdown. You can:
- Switch between light and dark themes. Your choice is remembered across visits.
- Pick a background design for the site: soft brush, geometric shapes, vintage paper, and more.
- Manage your account preferences.
Account & safety
Reporting content
If you see a story, chapter, or comment that breaks the Terms of Service (plagiarism, harassment, hate speech, content involving minors), email us at hello@booklane.art with a link to the content and a brief description. We review reports promptly.
Privacy & data
How we collect, use, and protect your information is covered in our Privacy Policy. You can request access to or deletion of your data by emailing privacy@booklane.art.
Deleting your account
Want to leave? Email privacy@booklane.art from the address on your account and we'll remove your profile and content.
Something missing from this guide? Email hello@booklane.art and we'll add it.