Linda Sherwood

Invoice Tips

By Linda Sherwood
www.lindasherwood.com
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Your invoice doesn't have to be fancy. It can be a Word document, or just pasted into an e-mail. The important part is that you keep track of your invoices. You'll need them for tax time. I recommend saving your invoices on your computer in a file called "invoices." Or you can print them out and save hard copies. The important thing is to keep them all together. The information that needs to be included is pretty simple. Please refer to the sample invoice below to see how a fairly simple invoice could look. There are five important parts to the invoice, and I'll explain those in more depth.

1. The Invoice # -- Develop a system system that works for you. I tend to use the publication's initials, the current year, and then the article number. For example, WD.2006.03, would be for Writer's Digest, in 2006, the third article written for WD that year. Just be sure that the publications you write for don't have the same initials. If they do, like Writer's Digest and Woman's Day, you'll have to make a slight adjustments to your system.

2. Article Information -- Clearly define the article you are invoicing. If you don't know the final headline, use the working title. Include the publication name, author name, title of article, description (is it an article or an essay?), and word count.

3. Rights sold -- This is extremely important. You want to clearly define what copyrights you are selling to the publisher. This will let the publisher know if the article is original or a reprint. It will also make it clear if they can reuse your article, or if it is just for one time use.

4. Compensation: -- Be sure to list the amount of payment you agreed upon, and it is a good idea to mention the currency you expect payment in. In my case, I prefer U.S. currency but will the publication know that?

5. Social Security # -- If you get paid more than $600, or you repeatedly write for this publication, you will need to supply your social security number. I recommend you share it only if they request it.

You can send an invoice by e-mail as well. Just be sure to clearly identify the invoice using the subject line. I recommend using "Invoice: Great Article Title Here." Then just paste the information into the body of an e-mail. There's no reason to use an attachment. Be sure to include all of the information you would in the normal e-mail. In fact, I recommend you develop an invoice using your normal method. That way you still have it for your records.

Sample Invoice

Jimmy Writer
PO Box XX, City, State ZIP Code 989-555-1212

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Invoice # GM.2006.01

March 13, 2006

Name of Publication: Great Magazine
Name of author: Jimmy Writer
Article: Best Article Ever
Type: Nonfiction Article
Word Count: 900
Rights: One time rights, reprint

Compensation: $200 U.S.
Terms: Net 30

Please remit payment to:

Name: Jimmy Writer
Phone Number: 989-555-1212
Address: PO Box XX
City, State ZIP
E-mail: jimmy@greatwriter.com
SS#XXX-XX-XXXX