Transcript

Hey, fellow indie authors.

I’m Tora Moon, and I’m your Indie Author Biz Guide, and this is Indie Biz Tips.

And tip number one: Treat your writing as a business.

 Many times, all we’re thinking about is getting our book or story published. We’re not thinking about what happens after we sell one.

 Guess what? You’re now in business. Whether you’re writing as a hobby or not.

 So the question to answer for this biz tip is, have you done the legal paperwork to set up your author business or publishing company?

 For most authors, just a DBA or a sole proprietorship or partnership, if you’re writing with a partner or your spouse, is all you need. You don’t need the expense of an LLC or a corporation unless you’re writing exposés.

For most fiction authors, especially, all you really need is a “doing business as” or in the UK, it’s a sole trader.

 These are usually simple and easy to set up. They don’t cost very much. As far as I’m aware, most states it’s under $100 to register a “doing business as” for your publishing company.

And it’s what I use for running my business and my publishing company is just a DBA. It’s all I’ve ever found I’ve needed.

 The action step for this biz tip is if you haven’t already created a business for your publishing company, check with your state on how to register your new publishing company as a DBA.

 If you later decide you need an LLC, you can convert your sole proprietorship or partnership into an LLC. You may never need it.

 Now I need to say this. This is not legal or accounting advice. You may want to check with your accountant.

 If you want to know more about how to treat your writing as a business, get this book: Business and Accounting for Authors. You can get it on my website or at your favorite retailer, and you can get it in e-book, print, or audiobook. And it’s a good primer on the business basics that you need.

 I hope this business tip was helpful and we’ll see you next time.