Becoming a Creator
Who can mint and who can list on mallow, how to apply to become a verified creator, and what stops an artwork from being listed.
Anyone can mint on mallow. To list your own work for its first sale, you need to be a verified creator, which means mallow has approved your application.
Who Can Do What
| Action | Who can do it |
|---|---|
| Mint a 1/1, an edition or a collection | Anyone signed in with a Solana wallet |
| List your own work for its first sale (a primary listing) | A verified creator with a complete profile |
| Create a Gumball | A verified creator with a complete profile |
| Resell an artwork you hold (a secondary listing) | Any holder, if the artwork passes the checks under Secondary listings |
You can mint before you're approved. The artwork stays in your wallet, unlisted, until you can list it.
Primary Listings
A primary listing needs both of these:
- An approved application. See Applying.
- A complete profile: a username, a profile picture and a linked X account. Open Edit profile on your profile to set the Username and Profile picture, then choose Connect under Social Links to link X.
If either is missing, the listing page shows Verify to list in place of the listing form:
| What is missing | Button shown |
|---|---|
| Approval | Open application form |
| Username, profile picture or X account | Edit profile |
Approval belongs to your mallow account, so it covers every wallet linked to that account.
A Metaplex Core 1/1 counts as a primary sale only while it sits in the wallet that minted it. See Core or Legacy.
Secondary Listings
You don't need to be a creator to resell an artwork you hold. The listing form opens if either of these is true:
- The artwork has a recorded sale. mallow has a record of a sale, an accepted offer, a Gumball or Jellybean draw, or a claimed raffle prize for it.
- Its creator is verified. The creator is a verified creator on mallow with a linked X account, and the artwork names them on chain as its update authority or as a verified creator.
If neither is true, the page shows "Sorry, this item cannot be listed." That's what you'll see for an artwork that was minted by someone who isn't a verified creator and has never sold.
You also need to be signed in with the wallet that holds the artwork, and to have verified that wallet. The page shows Verify wallet if you haven't.
Applying
Apply at mallow.art/apply. The Apply link on the Create page and the Open application form button both lead there, and the form takes a few minutes.
Sign In and Verify Your Wallet
Sign in with the wallet you use on mallow. The application belongs to your mallow account, so there's no wallet address to type in.
The page then asks you to verify your wallet. Choose Verify wallet and sign the message. Signing is free and sends no transaction. Your application is private to you, and the signature proves the account is yours.
Link Your X Account
Choose Link X account. mallow uses your X account to confirm who you are, and adds it to your mallow profile straight away. If your profile already has an X account linked, this step is skipped.
An X account that is linked to another mallow profile can't be used. Unlink it there first, or link a different one.
Fill In the Form
| Field | Notes |
|---|---|
| Optional, and never shown publicly. mallow emails you the result. Without an email, check the application page instead. If your account already has an email, the form uses it | |
| Link this email to your account? | Optional. Turns on emails about sales, offers and bids. To link it, choose Send verification code and enter the 6-digit code mallow sends |
| Sign up for marketing emails? | Yes or no. You can change it later in settings |
| Other marketplaces | Optional. Links to your profiles anywhere else you sell, one per line, up to 10. They strengthen an application |
| Proof you made your work | Required. See Proof |
| Terms and Conditions | Required. Tick the box to agree to mallow's Terms and Conditions |
Submit
Choose Submit application. The page changes to We've got it while the mallow team reviews your application. A person reads every one.
You can keep minting while you wait. To change something, open the same page, choose Update application, edit the form and choose Save changes. An update keeps your place in the queue, and the reviewer sees what changed.
Proof
Your proof has to show the artwork being made or edited. A finished image on its own isn't accepted. The clearest proof is a screen recording of your working file, for example one where you turn layers on and off.
You upload the proof as a file on the application page:
| Formats | MP4 video, or a JPG, PNG or WebP image |
| Max size | 50 MB |
| Length | Keep it short. 30 seconds of turning layers on and off is enough |
MOV files aren't accepted, and renaming one to .mp4 doesn't work. On an iPhone, export the screen recording as MP4 first.
Only you and the mallow team can see your proof. mallow deletes proof files 12 months after it decides the application. The Privacy Policy describes what an application stores.
The Decision
mallow tells you the result in three places: an email, if you gave one, a notification on mallow, and the application page itself.
| Result | What the page shows | What you can do |
|---|---|---|
| Approved | Welcome to mallow | List primary sales. See After approval |
| Not approved, with a reason | Not approved this time, and why | Choose Apply again whenever you're ready. Fix what the reason names first |
| Not approved, with a date | Not approved this time, and "You're welcome to apply again from" a date | Wait until that date. It's 60 days after the decision |
| Final | "This decision is final." | You can't apply again. mallow gives this result when the artwork appears to belong to another artist |
The reasons a reviewer can give include a missing proof, a proof that doesn't show the artwork being made or edited, a proof that can't be connected to the artwork or to you, and an X account that doesn't confirm who you are.
A waiting period or a final decision covers the mallow account, every wallet linked to it and its X account. Applying from another account with the same wallet or X account shows You can't apply right now or You can't apply again.
What mallow Looks For
- Proof of process, as above
- Original work. Your own art, not pieces taken from someone else
- Honesty about AI and derivative work. AI work is allowed. Add the AI category when you mint it
The Community Guidelines set out the rules in full.
After Approval
- You can list primary sales, once your profile is complete
- A Verified creator badge appears beside your name
- Your account receives one free mint ticket, if it has never had one. It pays for one Metaplex Core mint. See Cream and free mints
Next, mint your artwork and choose a sale format. mallow takes a fee on sales, listed on the Fees page.
What Blocks a Listing
| Cause | What you see | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| The artwork or its creator is flagged | "The creator of this artwork has been flagged for suspicious activity." | Contact the team on Discord if you think it's a mistake |
| You aren't an approved creator | Open application form | Apply |
| Your profile is incomplete | Edit profile | Add a username, a profile picture and an X account |
| A different wallet holds the artwork | "Please sign in with the wallet holding this token" | Switch to that wallet |
| The token type isn't supported | A message naming the type | See What can't be listed |
The mallow team can flag an account, a single artwork together with all of its editions, or a Gumball. While a creator is flagged, none of their artworks can be listed by anyone, holders included. A flag can be lifted.
mallow doesn't allow the sale of stolen art. To report an artwork, open a ticket on Discord.
mallow can also withdraw a creator's approval. An unused free mint ticket is removed with it.