Taxes and Filing at a Loss

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wilderness
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Taxes and Filing at a Loss

Post by wilderness » January 16th, 2013, 1:11 pm

So...I've always heard that you can file as a self-employed writer and operate at a loss for 2 years in a row. Does anyone know if Turbo Tax has an easy way to file this way, or would you recommend an accountant? Any advice is appreciated; you don't need to be a tax lawyer. Links to relevant resources would be great.

thewordsmith
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Re: Taxes and Filing at a Loss

Post by thewordsmith » June 18th, 2013, 4:49 pm

wilderness wrote:So...I've always heard that you can file as a self-employed writer and operate at a loss for 2 years in a row. Does anyone know if Turbo Tax has an easy way to file this way, or would you recommend an accountant? Any advice is appreciated; you don't need to be a tax lawyer. Links to relevant resources would be great.

Although it's a little late for filing taxes this year, mea culpa, I would caution you about trying to reclaim writing related expenses as a tax write off UNLESS, and this is the primary caveat, you have had some earnings as a writer in the year for which you intend to file your business loss. It doesn't have to be a large sum of money. If you won $100 in a writing competition or $20 for a poetry anthology, then you may file your expenses as a loss if you have spent more than the amount of your earnings made from writing. If you have had no earnings as a writer in a particular year, you may not file a business loss from your writing.

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HillaryJ
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Re: Taxes and Filing at a Loss

Post by HillaryJ » June 25th, 2013, 3:21 am

Wilderness,
I'd recommend consulting an accountant in the beginning, to clarify how and what you should do now and going forward. I'd also recommend that you ask your prospective advisors if they have experience working with freelancers or writers. You might also consider joining a writer's professional group (tax deductible membership :) ) such as RWA, as they often provide some advise from CPAs and Attorneys who work with writers. That's a good starting point, not a substitute for professional advise.
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