Writer's Taxes - advice from other freelance writers?

This doesn't really have anything to do with fraudulent/legitimate sites, but do any other American writers out there have any advice about filing taxes? This is the first year I've had to since starting to work for real companies (that report to the IRS), and I'm not enjoying the 15.3% self-employment tax--any legitimate way around it that anyone knows of?

I know (or assume, actually), that no one here is a tax lawyer, but many of you have been doing this for longer than I....

Thanks for any help (even if its a "tired that, give up now" message).

If you freelance for an American company, it is legally obligated to send you a 1099 if you earn more than $600.


Nope-that's the beauty of the IRS.

Kind of what I thought, but it was worth a try. Thanks for getting back to me.

The downside to working for legitimate people....

Spend and claim deductions. Computer gear, office furniture, office supplies and the like are all legal and quite eligible if you use them for work support. I claim things like my internet connection, my roaming connection, my cell phone line (which is used for work) things of that nature. I highly recommend travel writing simply because it gives you so many opportunities for deductions that even small assignments can be very lucrative.

You can also claim things like your home office (if you work at home) as part of your deductions.

A good accountant should be able to point you in the right direction.

Stamps
Mileage
Business meals
Cosmetic/structural work done in the home office

Totally agree with you.

While I don't have experience as a professional writer, I am starting my own business. I've recently learned that Delaware does not charge state income tax for out of state income with LLCs and as such skips the 15% unemployment tax. All you need is a mailing address in Delaware (which is easy to obtain), about $500 to set up the LLC initially, and $250 a year to maintain the LLC after that. Best part: it's totally legal. Of course all this assumes you don't live in Delaware. There are a lot of details to doing this and I'm still learning myself (US tax code is as deep and mysterious as the Pacific), but shoot me a PM if you want to chat about options; I was actually going to PM you anyway about a job Pheelyks.

EDIT: out of state income tax exemption also applies to Corporations. An LLC probably makes more sense for you though.

yeah just claim everything they already mentioned. keep receipts.

Just a general business license ($30-$50 state) and a federal tax ID number (free) is fine if writing is what you do full time. When you file your taxes just write off every expense such as computer etc. Also you can write off part of your electric bill, home owners insurance etc if you have a home office (*Wink*Wink* but have proof). These write-offs will balance out any amount that you are paying in taxes giving you the lowest amount possible. If you have another job and write part time include it in "earned income" then you just file an itemized return and balance it out with write-offs from your primary employment. Pretty easy, remember that only the poor and the ignorant pay taxes in the US. The tax codes are made for the CEOs, politicians and others to exploit. I have no problems keeping my money from becoming an AIG Bonus-

What about electricity too? I'm fairly certain in the UK you can get special dispensation for electricity if you 'work from home.'

In general, one may deduct any household expense that is directly related to the home office/business. For example, if "John" puts a new roof on his 1,000-square-foot home that includes a 150-square-foot office, John can apply a proportional deduction of 15% to the final cost of the entire roof job.

With new 2018 US tax laws in effect, it is worth it to revive this thread. After all, the new tax season will be here in 4 months. I know, it seems like yesterday, we were finishing 2017 taxes, but these next 4 months will fly by and Uncle Sam will be wanting a cut! ;)

There's a lot of new perks for freelancers and small businesses, but there's also some changes that US-based writers will want to know about. BankTracker has a good article here: mybanktracker.com/news/top-tax-breaks-for-freelancers as does SmallBizDaily: smallbizdaily.com/new-tax-law-offers-many-perks-for-self-employed/

I'm still reading through everything and thankfully my tax software will handle most of the changes, but so far, I'm fairly pleased with the lower tax rates and higher standard deductions. Also, you know how you could claim a 50% depreciation on purchases (i.e. computers, etc.)? Well, now you can claim 100% depreciation.

How do you handle taxes? Prep yourself (pen to paper), software, or accountant/preparer?

With the financial effects of the lock-down delivering a chain reaction, expect that there will be 2020 tax breaks to help free up some of the financial burden of those who had to work from home. I am sure the IRS planners are already thinking of ways to allow everyone, not just freelancers, to keep more of their money for their personal and business use. It is becoming obvious that work from home will be a permanent fixture for most offices and freelancers may be part of the groups that will benefit from the tax breaks. Let's just wait and see as to what kind help might come from the taxman.

It is the job of the writer to keep track of his income and deduct his taxes from it as the law provides in his home country. The writing company should not withhold tax for the writer for any reason since they are not covered by the tax laws of the writer's country. There are usually tax brackets that the income falls into. Some writers pay taxes because they earn that much, others, do not. It all depends upon how your income is during the year. These days, the writers are not paying taxes from their line of work since they are barely making ends meet at this point.

Anybody earning $400 or more from self-employment in any calendar year must file federal income taxes; so that covers anybody actually earning a living in this industry, as well as plenty of people not even earning a living from it.