The Thorns in the Rose

“But he that dares not grasp the thorn should never crave the rose.”
– Anne Bronte

In Issue #186

Reader Feedback: The Thorns in the Rose

I am the first person to admit – I am terrible with things like filing taxes, paying parking tickets, getting my license and registration renewed. Basically, all things bureaucratic are anathema to me. And I am always so grateful when someone steers me away from danger in these areas, and helps me stick to the straight and narrow.

So my ears perked up when I got the following note in response to my column last week. As you might imagine, the issue of taxes didn’t even occur to me. Barter, I thought? Brilliant! Bring it on!

Fortunately, a little good advice came in, and I wanted to pass it along ASAP. Check it out, and get the down low from your own accountant whenever you set up a barter arrangement as compensation for a project.

And for the record, don’t let this scare you. Being aware just means you’ll make a better deal, and not pay a high price for your goodies later, when you don’t see it coming.

Here you go:

Dear Fellow Copywriters,

I enjoyed Ms. Reichert’s article on bartering, but the little voice in the back of my head kept asking "what about the taxes?" Last year, I wrote the copy for a client’s woodchipper catalog in exchange for $500 and a woodchipper (which retails at about $3500).

I had the foresight to ask my accountant how to treat bartered goods and services, and the short answer is that you just have to treat it like income. That meant I got a great woodchipper, but I still owed the IRS and my state about $1,000 for this one project — money that I didn’t have in my copywriting business account. The barter system was a great way to get my foot in the door with a client because it showed how serious I was about their product, but you better have plenty of other projects bringing in some cash before you barter yourself into trouble with the IRS.

There may be a fine line between getting complimentary glicken while on assignment for a travel article and actually bartering for it as part of your initial agreement. So, the best bet is to check with a CPA or other tax advisor before you sign a barter agreement.

Even travel writers should know what they are getting into before they accept complimentary meals, lodging, etc. from the businesses they are writing about. Yes, junkets and complimentary meals are common in travel writing. However, in my 12 years as a journalist writing occasional travel or food articles, I almost always had to pay up front and get reimbursed from the magazine or newspaper I was working for. There was that awesome month of free skiing up at Solitude in Utah, though! If the business offered a comp meal or something, I had to say "no thanks." In fact, some publications prohibit their writers from accepting complimentary stuff and junkets as a way to maintain journalistic objectivity. Just check with the publication you are writing for before diving too deep into your complimentary lobster dinner.

By the way, the woodchipper folks just told me that their sales are up 20% this year after the new catalog came out. They called last week to see if I was available for more projects this fall, which they will pay for in dollars and cents. I guess I can now claim that my copy has helped a company increase its sales by millions of dollars.

Thanks for the good ideas,
Rich Bachus
rbachus@earthlink.net

No, no Rich … thank you!

Resource Referral: Become a Master By Midnight Tonight!

You might have already seen this – but just in case you haven’t paid attention to it, I wanted to bring it to your attention. You only have until midnight to take advantage of this offer! And I don’t say this very often, but you’re a fool if you don’t.

It is simply the best deal that AWAI has ever offered on their Master’s Program.

If you’ve been looking for “the edge” that would finally get you up and running and making more serious money – this is it. I’d go as far as to say that I don’t think you can break into the six-figure stratosphere without knowing the secrets that live in this program. And it’s never been offered at a better price or with better, more relevant bonuses than this offer.

Don’t wait. Check it out now: http://www.thewriterslife.com/cp/mastersspecial/

The CP Mentoring Program is Back …

“Hi! Absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE you two! Met you both at last year’s bootcamp and your articles are such an embodiment of the two of you–I feel like I’m listening while I’m actually reading. My question is this: Am I remembering that y’all are offering a mentorship type program? I really need some structured and feedback. Although the AWAI courses and classes are good, and the peer review process is good–I want something more. So I’m checking around. If you’re not offering a mentorship program, can you suggest one? Sure appreciate anything you can tell me. Thank you!” – J.A.

After a little summer hiatus, we’re bringing the Copy Protégé Mentoring Program back! Since we’ve gotten several inquiries just like this one during our break, we decided to step up the start-up date. We will be convening one group each – for a total of 8 people – and will begin sessions the week of August 18th.

So if you’ve been waiting for us to get going again, let us know. Entrance will be first by application, and second, on a first come, first serve basis. Send a writing sample (no more than 2 pages) and your goals for the next six months to admin@copyprotege.com if you’re interested.