Last updated 2026-10-17
What this covers
Paper Gold is a membership community of booksellers run from the United States. This policy explains what information we collect when you use our website, how we use it, who can see it, and the choices you have. When we say "we" or "us", we mean the people who run Paper Gold.
What we collect
When you sign in with Patreon
Members sign in using Patreon. When you do, Patreon shares the following with us:
- Your Patreon user ID
- Your name and the link to your Patreon profile picture
- The email address on your membership record
- Your membership status
- The ID of the Discord account connected to your Patreon, if any
We never see your Patreon password or your payment details. Patreon handles billing.
Your directory profile
Members can choose to create a profile in our member directory. A profile can include your name, business name, bio, city and state, contact email, phone number, shop and social links, and Discord name. You decide what to fill in. We convert the city you enter into map coordinates so you can appear on our member map.
The contact form
If you send us a message through the contact form, we collect your name, email address, the topic you pick, and your message. We store the message and email it to ourselves so we can reply.
Cookies
We only use cookies that are strictly necessary for the site to work:
- A signed session cookie that keeps you signed in as a member
- An admin session cookie used by the people who run the site
- A short-lived cookie that protects the Patreon sign-in process
We do not use advertising or analytics cookies.
How we use it
- To sign you in and confirm that your membership is active
- To show your directory profile and map pin to other signed-in members
- To link your profile to your Discord account
- To read and reply to messages you send us
- To keep the community safe and enforce our Terms
We do not sell your information.
Who can see your directory profile
Your profile is visible only to signed-in members with an active membership. It is not visible to the public. You can set sharing preferences for individual fields, so you decide which details other members see.
Site admins (the people who run Paper Gold) can see all profile data, including the profiles of members whose membership is no longer active.
Services we rely on
We use a few outside services to run Paper Gold. Each one has its own privacy policy.
- Railway hosts our website and our Postgres database in the United States.
- Patreon handles membership, billing, and sign-in.
- Discord hosts our community chat.
- YouTube hosts our public videos, which we embed or link to.
- OpenStreetMap Nominatim turns profile cities into map coordinates.
- Resend delivers contact form messages to our inbox, when enabled.
Some links on our site are affiliate links. If you follow one, the site you visit handles your information under its own policy.
How long we keep data
- Contact form messages: up to 12 months.
- Directory profile data: for as long as your account exists, or until you delete your profile.
Your choices and rights
- Edit or delete your profile at any time from the members area.
- Choose what to share using the sharing preferences on your profile.
- Ask for access, correction, or deletion of your data by emailing papergoldbooks@gmail.com.
- Cancel your membership at any time through Patreon.
Security
We take reasonable measures to protect your information, such as signed session cookies and limiting profile access to signed-in members and admins. No system is perfect, though, so we cannot promise that your information will always be completely secure.
Children
Paper Gold is for adults who run or are starting a business. It is not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect information from them. If you believe a child has given us information, please contact us and we will delete it.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. When we do, we will change the date at the top of this page.
Contact
Questions about your privacy? Email us at papergoldbooks@gmail.com or use our contact form.