Well, I’m finally a full-fledged Author! It’s an exciting time and also a humbling one as Under This Same Sky hits the market and my years of work on this particular novel come to fruition. As my novel finds its way into the hands of readers, I pray the Lord uses it to touch many hearts and lives.

As I’ve journeyed from writer to author, I’ve discovered something intriguing. While there is scads of information about writing a novel, finding an agent or publisher, marketing techniques, and every other aspect of writing one can imagine, there is one area of instruction that is virtually non-existent – that of handling the business side of publication.

As I ventured into the other side of publishing, I found myself totally unprepared for some of the expectations. Though I realized there would be income and expenses to keep track of, upon conducting a bit of research, I found there are a couple of requirements I hadn’t anticipated in the area of book selling.

Depending on which state you reside in, new authors may need to secure:

A BUSINESS LICENSE – My state (IL) requires anyone selling a product to apply for a business license. Each state is different, however, so to ensure you are within the law of your state it’s best to contact the Dept. of Revenue to check your particular state’s requirements. It’s to your advantage to apply ahead of any book signing events or releases.

APPLYING SALE’S TAX – Once you’ve applied for a business license, you’ll be given a tax ID # which will be used when filing sale’s tax. Each sale of a book requires sales tax to be applied. It is the author’s discretion as to if he/she adds the tax to the price of the book or absorbs the cost. Out of state sales and giveaways are generally not liable to sales tax.

While the business aspect may not be our favorite part of the writing industry, it’s important to be well informed. Once we have a handle on all that’s required, it will be easier to concentrate on what we know and like best: WRITING!