Privacy Policy

1. Information I Collect

Information you provide directly

You may provide personal information when you contact me, subscribe to my newsletter, reply to an email, register or apply for a Beta or ARC reader programme, participate in a giveaway or survey, submit reader feedback, or take part in another voluntary activity.

This information may include your name, email address, message content, application answers, reader preferences, review-platform information, feedback, consent choices, and any other information you choose to provide.

Newsletter information

If you subscribe to my newsletter, MailerLite processes your email address and related subscription information on my behalf. This may include your name, subscription status, signup date, email preferences, delivery status, and basic engagement information.

Reader Registry information

If you register or apply for a Beta or ARC reader programme, the website may collect your name, email address, programme preference, consent record, application responses, invitation and application status, participation history, feedback, review information, and related administrative records.

Reader Registry records are used to administer reader programmes, communicate with applicants and participants, measure programme performance, manage consent, maintain audit records, and protect the integrity of advance or unpublished material.

Reader Hub account information

If you create a Reader Hub account, the website collects your name, email address, and password (stored as a secure hash, never in plain text). Signed-in features may also involve a display handle you choose, an avatar selected from a curated library, your Faction Recruitment Assessment result, badges you've earned, and your reading and exploration progress, where you choose to use them.

Public Standing information

If you choose to set a display handle (available to readers aged 18 or older), your handle, avatar, Faction Recruitment Assessment result, and badge count become visible to other signed-in readers of the Reader Hub. This information is not visible to the general public, to visitors who are not signed in, or to search engines. Your real name and email address are never shown to other readers.

Technical information

Basic technical information may be collected automatically by the website host, security tools, application logs, or server logs. This may include your IP address, browser type, device type, operating system, referring page, pages visited, date and time of access, and similar technical information.

This information is generally used to operate and secure the website, diagnose problems, prevent abuse, investigate errors, and maintain normal service.

Public forms may also use anti-spam and bot-protection services. These services may process limited technical information, including your IP address, browser or device information, request metadata, session information, and verification results, to detect automated activity and protect the website from abuse.

Reader Hub progress

If you are signed in, your reading and exploration progress in the Reader Hub is stored on the server against your account, not in your browser. If you are browsing without an account, this progress exists only in your browser's memory for the current visit — it is not saved anywhere and will not persist once you close or reload the page.

2. How I Use Personal Information

I may use personal information to:

• respond to messages and requests;
• send newsletters and author updates to subscribers;
• manage subscriptions, preferences, and unsubscribe requests;
• verify email addresses;
• administer Beta and ARC reader registration, applications, invitations, participation, feedback, and review workflows;
• administer Reader Hub accounts, including sign-in, password resets, and self-service account deletion;
• maintain consent, suppression, security, and audit records;
• operate, secure, troubleshoot, and improve the website and related services;
• prevent spam, abuse, fraud, unauthorised access, or technical problems;
• comply with legal obligations and protect legal rights, privacy, safety, and property.

I do not sell personal information.

3. Newsletter and Email Communications

If you subscribe to the newsletter or consent to reader-programme communications, I may send emails about books, writing, releases, events, promotions, giveaways, reader updates, application status, invitations, programme administration, and related author communications.

You may unsubscribe from marketing emails at any time using the unsubscribe link included in those emails. Reader-programme or transactional messages may still be sent where necessary to administer a request, application, participation, consent withdrawal, or other service you initiated.

MailerLite is used to manage subscriber records and send email communications. MailerLite processes subscriber information as a service provider on my behalf and maintains its own privacy and data-processing terms.

4. Third-Party Service Providers

I may use trusted third-party providers to operate the website and communicate with readers. These providers may process limited personal information only as needed to provide their services.

Providers may include website hosting and security services, MailerLite, Prosopo for anti-spam and bot protection, email delivery services, database and backup services, and external retailers or platforms linked from the website.

Third-party providers have their own privacy policies and practices. I am not responsible for the privacy practices of third-party websites or services that you access independently.

5. Links to Other Websites

This website may contain links to book retailers, publisher pages, social media platforms, review sites, event platforms, and other external resources.

When you follow an external link, the third party's own privacy policy, terms, and practices apply. I do not control third-party websites and am not responsible for how they handle personal information.

6. Cookies and Local Storage

This website may use cookies, local storage, or similar technologies for basic functionality, security, newsletter forms, reader-programme forms, and interactive reader features.

Newsletter and reader-programme forms use an anti-spam verification widget (Prosopo) that runs in your browser and may set its own cookies to help distinguish human visitors from automated bots. This is used for security and abuse-prevention purposes only, not advertising or tracking.

At the effective date above, the website does not use cookies for third-party advertising or third-party behavioural analytics.

You can control or delete cookies and local storage through your browser settings. Blocking or deleting them may affect some website features.

7. Legal Bases for Processing

Where applicable law requires a legal basis for processing personal information, I rely on one or more of the following:

• your consent, including newsletter and reader-programme consent;
• performance of a service or action you requested;
• legitimate interests in operating and securing the website, communicating with readers, administering reader programmes, and maintaining records;
• compliance with legal obligations.

You may withdraw consent for marketing communications at any time. Withdrawal does not affect processing already carried out lawfully before withdrawal.

8. How Long Information Is Kept

Personal information is kept only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this policy.

Newsletter information may be kept while you remain subscribed and afterwards where necessary to maintain unsubscribe or suppression records.

Reader Registry records may be retained for the duration of an application or programme and afterwards where reasonably needed for programme administration, security, audit, consent history, dispute resolution, legal compliance, or the protection of unpublished material.

If you delete your Reader Hub account, your name, email address, password, display handle, avatar, and Faction Recruitment Assessment result are permanently and irreversibly deleted. Where you also have a history with a Beta or ARC reader programme, a minimal record is retained as described above for programme administration, security, audit, consent history, dispute resolution, or legal compliance — that record is anonymised and can no longer identify you.

Contact messages, server logs, security records, backups, and technical records may be retained for reasonable operational, security, recordkeeping, or legal periods.

9. Security

I take reasonable administrative and technical steps to protect personal information from unauthorised access, misuse, loss, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures may include access controls, encryption, secure tokens, audit records, backups, and restricted administrative access.

No website, database, email system, or internet transmission is completely secure. Absolute security cannot be guaranteed.

10. Your Rights and Choices

Depending on where you live, you may have rights to request access to personal information, ask for correction, request deletion or anonymisation, object to or restrict certain processing, withdraw consent, unsubscribe from marketing messages, or complain to a relevant privacy authority.

If you have a Reader Hub account, you can permanently delete it yourself at any time from the Manage Account page, without needing to contact me. Deletion is immediate and irreversible, and removes your name, email, password, handle, avatar, and assessment result. You'll receive an email confirming the deletion once it's complete.

To make a privacy request, email privacy@stevensheeley.com. I may need to verify your identity before completing a request.

If you make a privacy complaint, I will acknowledge it, investigate the matter, and respond within a reasonable period. If you are not satisfied with the response, you may contact the relevant privacy regulator in your location.

11. Children’s Privacy

This website is intended for a general audience and is not directed to children under 13. I do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided personal information, please contact me so appropriate steps can be taken.

Beta reader, ARC reader, proofing, and other reader programmes offered through this website are restricted to people aged 18 or over unless expressly stated otherwise.

Choosing a display handle — which makes your handle, avatar, assessment result, and badges visible to other signed-in readers — also requires confirming you are 18 years of age or older.

12. International Processing

This website may be accessed from different countries. Personal information may be processed in Australia and in countries where hosting, email, database, security, or other service providers operate. Those countries may have privacy laws that differ from those in your location.

13. Changes to This Policy

I may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When I do, the effective date at the top of the page will be updated and the current version will be posted here.

14. Contact

For questions, requests, or concerns about this Privacy Policy or personal information, contact:

Steven Sheeley
info@stevensheeley.com