diff --git a/eleventy.config.js b/eleventy.config.js
index 7d866b0..d780aec 100644
--- a/eleventy.config.js
+++ b/eleventy.config.js
@@ -45,6 +45,7 @@ export default async function (eleventyConfig) {
   eleventyConfig.addPlugin(plugins.htmlConfig);
   eleventyConfig.addPlugin(plugins.cssConfig);
   eleventyConfig.addPlugin(plugins.jsConfig);
+	eleventyConfig.addPlugin(plugins.drafts);
 
   eleventyConfig.addPlugin(plugins.EleventyRenderPlugin);
   eleventyConfig.addPlugin(plugins.rss);
diff --git a/src/_config/plugins.js b/src/_config/plugins.js
index a74642c..cfa4006 100644
--- a/src/_config/plugins.js
+++ b/src/_config/plugins.js
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import webc from '@11ty/eleventy-plugin-webc';
 
 // custom
 import {markdownLib} from './plugins/markdown.js';
+import {drafts} from './plugins/drafts.js';
 
 // Custom transforms
 import {htmlConfig} from './plugins/html-config.js';
@@ -20,6 +21,7 @@ export default {
   syntaxHighlight,
   webc,
   markdownLib,
+	drafts,
   htmlConfig,
   cssConfig,
   jsConfig
diff --git a/src/_config/plugins/drafts.js b/src/_config/plugins/drafts.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..05eec4a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/_config/plugins/drafts.js
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+export const drafts = eleventyConfig => {
+  eleventyConfig.addGlobalData('eleventyComputed.permalink', function () {
+    return data => {
+      // Always skip during non-watch/serve builds
+      if (data.draft && !process.env.BUILD_DRAFTS) {
+        return false; // Ensure templates that use this handle it correctly
+      }
+      return data.permalink;
+    };
+  });
+
+  // When `eleventyExcludeFromCollections` is true, the file is not included in any collections
+  eleventyConfig.addGlobalData('eleventyComputed.eleventyExcludeFromCollections', function () {
+    return data => {
+      // Always exclude from non-watch/serve builds
+      if (data.draft && !process.env.BUILD_DRAFTS) {
+        return true;
+      }
+
+      return data.eleventyExcludeFromCollections ?? false;
+    };
+  });
+
+  eleventyConfig.on('eleventy.before', ({runMode}) => {
+    // Set the environment variable
+    if (runMode === 'serve' || runMode === 'watch') {
+      process.env.BUILD_DRAFTS = true;
+    }
+  });
+};
diff --git a/src/_data/helpers.js b/src/_data/helpers.js
index 0c2fcd3..a6893bd 100644
--- a/src/_data/helpers.js
+++ b/src/_data/helpers.js
@@ -9,12 +9,15 @@
 export function getLinkActiveState(itemUrl, pageUrl) {
   let response = '';
 
-  if (itemUrl === pageUrl) {
-    response = ' aria-current="page"';
-  }
+  // Ensure pageUrl is a string before proceeding
+  if (typeof pageUrl === 'string') {
+    if (itemUrl === pageUrl) {
+      response = ' aria-current="page"';
+    }
 
-  if (itemUrl.length > 1 && pageUrl.indexOf(itemUrl.replace('/page-0/', '')) === 0) {
-    response += 'data-state="active"';
+    if (itemUrl.length > 1 && pageUrl.startsWith(itemUrl.replace('/page-0/', ''))) {
+      response += ' data-state="active"';
+    }
   }
 
   return response;