This is a truncated version of the EFA Chicagoland Chapter News. If you would like to read the full e-newsletter, visit the archive, where you can also subscribe to have it delivered to your inbox monthly.

MIND CANDY

• Journo Listserv. Are you a journalist looking to network with fellow newshounds? Sign up for the SPJ Refresh listserv. It’s free and you don’t have to be a member of the Society of Professional Journalists to join.
• Grumpy Editors. Do you have a contact form on your website? While it looks professional, self-described “grumpy editor” Melanie Padgett Powers (and other prospective clients) may find it too opaque to use.
• LGBTQ+ Mentors. The LGBTQ+ Editors Association recently began a mentorship program for LGBTQ+ editors “to support one another in their career goals, foster growth, and forge connections.” You can sign up to be either a mentor or mentee—or both.

Freelance News

Be a Better Freelancer: Book Recommendations

At our November 2023 networking meeting, the following books were recommended by chapter member Sabrina Butler during the discussion:

• Get Clients Now! A 28-Day Marketing Program for Professionals, Consultants & Coaches. Written by C.J. Hayden, this book uses a “cookbook model” to help readers identify the missing ingredients to their marketing plan and create a customized strategy. The paperback is available for purchase online, or you can check out a free ebook through Hoopla using your Chicago Public Library card.
• The Freelancer’s Bible: Everything You Need to Know to Have the Career of Your Dreams―On Your Terms. Co-authors Sara Horowitz and Toni Sciarra Poynter offer a “one-stop, all-encompassing guide to every practical detail and challenge of being a nimble, flexible, and successful freelancer,” or so says the Hoopla review. This title is available for purchase online as either a paperback or ebook or you can check out ebooks via Hoopla or Overdrive/Libby.
• Profit First: Transform Your Business From a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money-Making Machine. Author Mike Michalowicz lays out how by “taking profit first and apportioning only what remains for expenses, entrepreneurs will transform their businesses from cash-eating monsters to profitable cash cows,” according to the library synopsis. You can buy the hardback, ebook, or audiobook online, or check out the ebook on Overdrive/Libby.

Don’t have a Chicago Public Library card? If you’re a Chicago resident and have never had a CPL card, you can apply for an eCard online. Only digital materials can be accessed with an eCard. See what services are and are not available (and to whom) on the CPL website.

Are there any books, apps, or other business-related items you just can’t do without? We’d love to hear about them. Contact us at chap_chicago@the-efa.org.

Estimated Tax Due Dates, Changes for 2024

With a new year comes new estimated tax due dates, as well as inflation adjustments and yet another delay to the tax-reporting requirements on third-party payment apps.

Dates for paying 2024 ES taxes are:

• April 15, 2024. Q1 payment covering Jan. 1 to March 31, 2024
• June 17, 2024. Q2 payment covering April 1 to May 31, 2024
• Sept. 16, 2024. Q3 payment covering June 1 to Aug. 31, 2024
• Jan. 15, 2025. Q4 payment covering Sept. 1 to Dec. 31, 2024

Other important dates are listed in IRS Publication 509.

The standard deduction was increased for the 2023 tax year, up to $13,850 for single filers and those married filing separately, $20,800 for head of household, and $27,700 for those married filing jointly. Tax brackets were also adjusted, though the top rate remains 37%.

The IRS also again delayed the tax-reporting requirements on third-party payment apps. Calling the 2023 tax year a “transition year,” the former limit of more than 200 transactions worth an aggregate of over $20,000 will remain in place.

EVENTS GALORE

Looking to connect with colleagues or gain new skills or insights? Check out the Media Types Omnicalendar for nationwide (and some worldwide) media- and publishing-related conferences, webinars, and other events of interest to self-employed editorial freelancers. For more EFA-specific events and classes, see the EFA Events page.