As the tax season is looming, I've started fielding questions about home offices, and the associated deductions. Do I have one? Yes. Do I recommend one? Yes. I've found it very useful for several reasons.

Here is what a home office is good for:

1. A physical barrier between you and your work (helps with balance).
2. A sound barrier, which is handy when you're conducting phone interviews.
3. A mential barrier to help you get "into the mood."
4. Tax deduction, if it's a dedicated space.
5. Meeting space, if you're comfortable having clients in your home.

However, here are some issues that come up when considering a home office:

1. Work-at-home mothers with small children will find a home office is not the best choice. You may want to wait until your children are grown and in school; I rarely worked in the office when my children were home--instead I took the laptop to where they were.

2. If you're going to share the home office space, that is, as a storage area, guest bedroom or whatnot, that will severely eat into your deduction and may negate any benefit.

3. If you are not disciplined enough to stop working when work is over, you may be better served in leaving the house to work at a library, cafe or rented space.

Fellow writers, how do you deal with office space? What can you add to the above for new freelancers who are just getting into this career?

In the process of preparing for tax season as a freelance writer, I was playing with my Excel spreadsheet, which I use to manage my accounts (money in, money out, hours worked, miles driven, etc).

My husband, an Excel guru, kindly made a graph of my income so I could see a visual representation of money in. Well, that darn graph is all over the place! There is no rhyme or reason to my monthly income. There are three spikes throughout the year, and the rest is pretty even- and low.

I'm sharing this with you to help new freelancers understand the reality of freelance writing income. Having a regular client or two who pays you monthly helps to pay your bills. The spikes in income are major clients who had long term projects that happened to pay out in that month. Ideally, you could ask your clients to set up a better payment schedule, but some companies are set in their ways.  

Experienced freelancers- do you have anything to add to this? Any help or suggestions for new writers?

This past month, I spent over 6 hours on the phone with the editors in charge of the four major writing magazines. I then spent even more time reading over their words from my transcriptionist. I was delighted to notice some major themes and similarities constantly coming up in our conversations, and so I'm sharing them with you.

Seven Things I Learned from Interviewing Magazine Editors

1. It takes a lot of hats. Not only did these editors come to their current jobs with experiences from a variety of careers (PR, editing books, marketing, teaching, newspapers), they also wear many hats in their current positions: they look at submissions, they plan content, they talk to freelancers, and (sometimes) they deal with advertisers.
2.  They love their job. More than one of the editors noted that their current position was the culmination of their career, and that they absolutely loved their job.
3. They are friendly, supportive, outgoing people. Each editor in the series was easy to talk to, willing to explain concepts, and quite patient and kind in dealing with the juggling of getting these interviews coordinated and published.  I'm generalizing, but my guess is that this attitude develops out of a love of their work, and their experience in dealing with writers, other editors, and etc. 
4. They are articulate. Expressing their ideas came easy for these four editors. Questions were easily answered and the content of their answers was understandable and well-stated. 
5. They leaped at opportunities. When describing their career arc, more than one editor made a reference to leaping at an opportunity that came up. As writers, let's internalize this as a positive example.
6. They were highly educated. All the editors had a lot of education underneath them, including formal education, like master's degrees, and less formal education in the form of voracious reading and learning appetites.
7. They had bite-sized nuggets of info ready for me. Perhaps this could be lumped in with being articulate, but each editor was willing to give great advice and interesting takes on the writing and querying world. This information was well-thought out and easily digestible, yet unique.

As a writer, I urge you to please consider reading the full interviews with the editors. It is indeed an education in and of itself.

Whew. I just finished uploading a massive feature piece: profiles, photos, and interviews featuring Writer's Digest, Writers' Journal, Poets & Writers, and the Writer--and interviews with their editors. They cover all those burning questions- why they choose the pieces they do, how to get their attention in a query, where to break into their publication, and, of course why you should consider subscribing to their publication.

It all begins with this photo gallery of the four main magazines, which is linked to it's own profile, and the editors' words of wisdom. In addition, don't forget to use the User Answers tool that About.com provides (at the bottom of the gallery) telling us what your favorite writing magazine is- and why.

I shouldn't tell you about the interview I just posted with Poets & Writers magazine editor Kevin Larimer. . . It's just one of a series, after all. But, you know, if you're here with me this dreary Wednesday, then, you get first dibs on Kevin's accumulated wisdom, along with his preferences on how to pitch the magazine!

Enjoy, but be sure to come back for the whole series, featuring editors from Writer's Digest, Writers' Journal and The Writer.

In March, I wrote about the Top 10 Writing Tools, and commentor Parepidemos noted that no one had discussed any kind of a timing system.

A timing system is indeed important! Not only can it help keep you on task, but it is an essential part of setting your freelance writing rates.

She suggested an iPhone ap, which I appreciated. But Verizon has me in their clutches, so I'm still pretty old school with timing my writing. So, I use a clock and a spreadsheet. A blank copy of a freelance writers business spreadsheet can be found in the forums for your use.

How do you stay on task? How do you track hours?

I'm just going to warn you. I have to. It's happened to me too many times to count, and I have to help new freelancers. That's my charge.

This Thanksgiving, someone's going to ask you what "exacly" you do for a living.  

We've talked about it in terms of cocktail parties and your career. But this is similar. You're just about to tuck into that fried turkey and pecan pie when someone decided they're just too curious to wait. Now, what, exactly, is it you do dear? I'm not sure I understand.

Be ready.

Here's mine: I write and edit for magazines, publishers, websites and individuals. I have a couple regular contracts, and some that hire me for just one project at a time. I work out of my home office, and most of my work is virtual, although I do have a local client or two. 

Ok, hilarious title, right? Write or Die is a web ap or software program that I heard about through the podcast I Should Be Writing. It helps you to keep writing by offering consequences when you stop typing. Some of the consequences mentioned include emitting a loud, annoying sound until you start again, or deleting your words one by one, until you start again (!!!). Fun stuff.

Of course, if you have the opposite problem- too much writing- be sure to read my article on 5 Ways to Reduce Your Word Count.

Demand Studios has posted their new health insurance plan on their site, and sent a mass email out to (I suppose) anyone who is or has signed up as a provider. If you didn't get that mass email, the info is available to the general public without a sign in at Demand Studios Health Insurance.

I'm not a health insurance expert, but coverage and payouts look similar to other freelance offerings such as those available through memberships with the Editorial Freelancers Association or MediaBistro's freelance health insurance plans.

Demand Studios' costs range from approximately $50 to $400 per month. To be eligible, writers must write 30 articles per month, and copyeditors must review 200 articles per month.  

Don't miss my multiple articles with more information on how to manage health insurance as a freelance writer.

We all have wisdom to share-- whether we've been writing 10 years or 10 months. That's why I put together this gallery of freelance writer profiles. Take a look at the trials and successes of these four freelance writers, whose experience ranges from 10+ years and rubbing elbows with Helen Steiner Rice to just months. 

Are there any freelance writers with interesting careers that you'd like to see join the series? If so, leave their name in the comments and I may contact them for the next set. The freelance writer series will be added to, and is arranged by experience level, so check back often!