Imagine putting on
your tax return under profession: WRITER.
I submitted a story to
a money-paying magazine for the first time yesterday. Two cents a word. The story is 2918 words, so if it gets published,
I get a cheque for $58.36. Woo hoo.
Will I have to declare
the income and pay tax? Of course, there
are significant expenses to negatively gear.
Late fees on library books not finished within the allotted
time; cups of tea purchased on breaks at TAFE; journals purchased and
never opened. Legitimate expenses incurred in the development of my writing career!
What’s that you
ask? If they pay two cents a word why not write more? Good question. The limit is 5,000 words but the payment is
capped at $75. A fortune was never going
to be made. Better to let the story
happen in the best amount of words.
No doubt the magazine
receives many submissions...the odds of selection are slim. If, in a few weeks, it doesn’t get published,
you’re welcome to ask for a copy. No
charge, because it wasn’t even worth $58.36.
But
the tax advice is still relevant, because if this one doesn't get published,
another one will.
Of course you declare it as tax!
ReplyDeleteBut then the good part starts....
You get the income you take the expenses...
First up that classic Olympia typewriter and all those ribbons. A beaten up desk in a beach house in the sand dunes. Several hundred reams of paper (mostly screwed up and hurled in the bin). 14 bottles of scotch (a week), one trip to Spain to find yourself and observe bull fighting for inspiration (the Spanish Civil War being long over). Six months in hospital after being gored at the running of the bulls.
I could go on, the expenses sure do mount up.
$58.36 declared on the tax is a small price to pay for opening the doors to such opportunities.
Anthony, too funny. Sounds a little like Hemingway...
ReplyDeleteMy two cents worth... use short words.
ReplyDeleteSpot the sales rep - looking for maximum return for least effort...
Deleteconsider it already spent by his wife.
ReplyDelete