Privacy Policy

Last updated: March 2026

Your privacy matters to us. Book Chat Club is built on trust — we want you to feel safe sharing your reading life with our community. This policy explains what we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have. We've written it in plain language because you shouldn't need a law degree to understand how your data is handled.

Who we are

Book Chat Club is an online community for adult readers and writers to connect through book clubs, creative writing groups, and literary discussion. We are operated by Troy Ewing. If you ever have questions about your privacy, you can reach us at info@bookchatclub.com.

What information we collect

We collect only what we need to make Book Chat Club work for you:

Account information — your display name, email address, and any profile details you choose to share (bio, avatar, favorite genres)
Reading activity — books you log, clubs you join, reading progress you track, and reviews you write
Content you create — discussion posts, creative writing, messages, notes, and quotes
Usage data — pages you visit and features you use, which helps us understand how to improve the platform

How we use your information

To run your account and provide all the features of Book Chat Club
To send notifications you've opted into (new messages, club updates, discussion replies)
To send the weekly digest email if you've enabled it
To improve the platform — understanding what features people use helps us build a better experience
To keep the community safe through content moderation

We never sell your data to third parties — ever.

What you control

You have meaningful control over your information:

Profile visibility — set your profile to Public, Connections Only, or Hidden
Following permissions — you can disable others from following you entirely
Email preferences — choose exactly which notifications you receive
Account deletion — you can delete your account and data at any time by contacting info@bookchatclub.com

Data storage and security

Your data is stored securely via Neon PostgreSQL with encrypted connections
Images and uploads are stored via Cloudinary
The platform is hosted on Vercel with industry-standard security practices
We take reasonable measures to protect your information, including encryption in transit and secure authentication

Cookies

We use essential cookies only — for authentication and session management so you stay logged in
No advertising cookies — ever
No third-party tracking cookies

Third-party services

We use a small number of trusted services to operate Book Chat Club:

Cloudinary — image and file storage
Resend — email delivery (verification, notifications, digests)
Vercel — platform hosting

Each of these services has their own privacy policies. We do not share your personal data with them beyond what is strictly necessary to operate the platform.

Children's privacy

Book Chat Club is strictly for users 18 years of age and older. We do not knowingly collect data from minors. If we discover that an account belongs to someone under 18, it will be immediately deactivated and associated data will be deleted. If you believe a minor is using the platform, please contact us right away.

Changes to this policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time as our platform evolves. When we make significant changes, we'll notify members via email or platform notification. Continued use of Book Chat Club after changes take effect means you accept the updated policy.

Contact us

Questions about your privacy or this policy? We're happy to help. Email us at info@bookchatclub.com and we'll respond within 5 business days.

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