OffTheRecord is a Hugo theme for publishing hidden or private posts, built on the papermod theme and designed to share private posts with a secret URL.
What is OffTheRecord?
OffTheRecord is a Hugo theme for sharing private posts, based on the Papermod theme. It takes Hugo content written in Markdown and outputs a static website where selected posts are not listed publicly. The theme requires Hugo extended version higher than 0.82 and is distributed through a GitHub repository with 5 stars. A live demo is available at hugo-hidden-post.netlify.app, and full documentation is hosted on roneo.org.
Key Features
- Papermod foundation — Inherits the clean, minimal layout and design conventions of the Papermod Hugo theme, so it feels familiar to Hugo users.
- Private/hidden posts — Lets you publish posts that are not shown in the site's regular listing, accessible only via a direct link.
- Hugo extended compatibility — Requires Hugo extended version above 0.82 to build the theme correctly.
- Markdown-based content — Content is authored in Markdown, Hugo's native format, so no special content system is needed.
- Demo site — A working demo at hugo-hidden-post.netlify.app shows the hidden-post behavior in action.
- Documentation — The setup and usage guide is available at roneo.org, covering installation and configuration.
Who is OffTheRecord for?
- Hugo bloggers who publish private posts: Share draft, personal, or restricted content with a chosen audience via a direct link without it appearing in the public blog index.
- Static site developers working with Hugo: Add a hidden-posts capability to a Papermod-based site while keeping the familiar Hugo build workflow.
- Teams sharing internal notes: Publish internal documentation or updates as hidden posts that only team members with the link can see.
What can you do with OffTheRecord?
- Unlisted announcements: Publish an announcement or news item that is not visible in the blog feed but remains accessible by direct URL to intended readers.
- Personal notes sharing: Share personal notes or study material with friends or colleagues without making them public.
- Preview content: Create preview versions of articles and share them with reviewers before the public release.
