I am always wary of things that advertise FREE.  However, the business cards from www.vistaprint.com are totally FREE.  Vistaprint sends you 250 business cards and all you have to pay for is the shipping. 

There are a number of templates from which to choose.  Vistaprint has them arranged in categories.  You can change very little on the freebies, but you have some design latitude if you pay.

The card stock is sturdy.  The font size and choice are limited (unless you decide to upgrade).  Colors are strong and cards have a nice clean cut edge.

You must be aware that vistaprint leaves their contact information on the back of your card at the bottom in small print.  Vistaprint.com also offers free rubber stamps, free customized sticky notes,  free pens,  free logo design, and free caricature designs. 

If you want business cards, this is not a bad deal. 

Next time I will tackle time management as I promised.  I just felt that telling you about the business cards  was too hard to keep a secret. No more procrastination.

I’m back from a great week of relaxation.  My husband and I went to Cancun, Mexico.  It is our first vacation together sans children in many, many years. 

Although our days were filled with exploration and tours, I somehow found time to read and think about writing.  Or in my case the lack of writing fiction.  I have no one to blame but myself.  I have the desire.  I possess the intellectual and technical knowledge.  However, I am unable to move beyond the initial planning stages. 

I tried to isolate my issues and realized that it isn’t one neatly packaged cause, but a myriad of excuses all converge into inertia.  Time management, or the lack of it, is one of the major culprits.  I work full time and when I get home, I feel brain dead, and opt to finish up small, not-too-demanding-on-the-brain activities, like folding laundry. 

I am in my mid fifties.  If I don’t get my act together, I may never go further than writing this blog.  That would be disappointing.

So, since time seems to be my greatest competitor, let’s continue with this theme next time.  If you have some good time management strategies or tips you would like to share, please comment.  I would love to hear what others are doing.  And how they make the leap from intellectually knowing and successful execution. 

I have worked with time management for tasks/projects  in several of my many places of employment.  However, knowing what to do is so totally different from doing what you know.  I am hoping if I articulate these strategy ideas that I will be more motivated to actually take my advice.  How great is that!

This week has been tough. I’ve been on overdrive for the past few days, adjusting to changes at work, keeping up with whatever the family is doing, and packing for vacation. This is the first vacation that my husband and I have taken in years. I am so looking forward to it….Anyway, before I left for vacation, I wanted to share with you a few more thoughts on plagiarism. Sharon Stoerger gathered some great articles on plagiarism and the college environment. http://www.web-miner.com/plagiarism

You might also visit Jonathan Bailey’s blog dedicated to plagiarism issues. He found ten things you should know about copyright on the US Copyright Office website. http://www.plagiarismtoday.com/2008/02/28/10-basics-about-
copyright-everyone-needs-to-know/

Ten Facts About Copyright

In order to speed up this process and make this information easier to digest, I’ve broken down the facts into ten short explanations with links to more information if desired.

1. Copyright Is Immediate: Copyright in a work is created once it is fixed into a tangible medium of expression. Though added legal avenues can be opened by registering the work with the Copyright Office, there are no formalities needed to obtain copyright in a work, including placing the copyright symbol.
2. Copyright Protects a Set of Rights: Copyright is not just about the exclusive right to copy, it also provides the copyright holder with a sole right to publicly display a work, to publicly perform the work and create derivative works. Doing any of these things without the permission of the rightsholder is likely to be an infringement.
3. Copyright Lasts a Really Long Time: In the United States, copyright in a personal creation lasts the life of the author plus seventy years. In corporate works, the term is a flat 95 years. After that term expires, the work passes into the public domain.
4. Copyright Does Not Protect Many Things: Copyright protects the expression of an idea, not the idea itself. It also, typically, does not protect titles of a work, systems, concepts and anything that has not been fixed into a permanent medium. Finally, all works that are in the public domain are not protected by copyright and can be used freely.
5. Not All Copying is Prevented: Though copyright gives the author of a work the sole right to produce copies, not all copying is prohibited. Fair use allows limited copying of a work “for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship or research.”
6. Fair Use is a Defense, Not a Right: Legally speaking, fair use is not a right, it is a defense against a copyright infringement suit (see footnote 20). Fair use rights do not exist and a whether or not a use is fair or not can only be determined conclusively by a judge/jury after the case has gone to the courts.
7. Work For Hire is Limited: Though, in most cases, copyright in the work transfers to the author, in some cases it can transfer to the employer. Those cases are called “works for hire” and are limited to employees of the company (as recognized by Federal guidelines) and contractors in a limited set of fields that sign a work for hire agreement before the work is created. Most contract work is not a work for hire.
8. It is Possible to Remove Many Infringing Works on the Web: If you find that your work is being misused on the Web, you can have it removed by filing a DMCA notice with the host. Alternatively, you can file a notice with the search engines and have the the content removed from their indexes. This can be done without an attorney or registering a work.
9. Benefits of Registration: Though registering your work with the U.S. Copyright Office does not earn you any new rights to your work, it is a prerequisite to filing suit for infringement in a Federal court, it enables you to collect attorney fees and statutory damages, serves as a public record of the copyright and services as prima facie evidence of ownership.
10. Poor Man’s Copyright is a Myth: Finally, many claim that you can protect a work by mailing it to yourself and using the postmark as proof of copyright. This does not work and no provision of the law exists to make it possible. So-called “Poor Man’s Copyright” is not a substitute for registration.

Cynthia Webb (great name because she is obviously a web reporter for the Washington Post) writes about the blogging ethics debate. Citing a flagarant abuse of copy and pasting, Webb gives a global view how people look at the incident. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A63407-2003Apr9.html

Lastly a blog on foxsports.com from socalsportsfan. He or she defines plagiarism rules for bloggers. http://community.foxsports.com/blogs/socalsportsfan/2006/07/16/Plagiarism   _Rules_What_Every_Blogger_Needs_To_Know

I think I’ve exhausted the plagiarism topic. Bottom line is that if you plagiarize, especially when it is out there for a gazillion people to see, you won’t be the only one that knows that it isn’t your work.

Since I am so challenged by my time management issues, I am going to explore this topic with you next time. I am learning the hard way. Your thoughts on plagiarism or time management are welcome.

I may get an entry in before I leave, but that is wishful thinking. I certainly will be back in ten days.

Before I leave the legal area, I am in the midst of gathering together a post with links to sites that have a good roundup of definitions and guidelines to keep your blog out of legal scrutiny.  That will be for the next post.

For me organizing is an acquired skill.  I used to toss half finished, some rejected manuscripts at the bottom of my desk drawer.  The only time they were retrieved was when I wanted to lift a particular passage to insert into a new piece. 

While spending hours sifting through my rejections, I thought of a great way to store material. 

The ole file folder in a file cabinet is ideal.  But if you don’t want to hassle with the effort or expense, you could get a file box, or any similar sized box.  Put each manuscript in a freezer quart size baggie.   On the freezer baggie there is a place to identify the work and the date.  

If you really want to save yourself time later, you can cut a CD of the work and place it in the baggie too.  This way, if you decide you would like to lift a whole scene from a previous work, you stick in the CD, cut and paste and modify.  Just dump the baggie into the box.  Voila.  No filing.  And you can easily retrieve old work.  Saves time and energy, both of which we all seem to be short of these days.

Blogging is fun.  It seems innocuous enough…that is, until one day you find a seething comment about your competitor on your blog.  At first glance, you might read the contribution as a gift, because you didn’t have the guts to be so brutally honest.  Maybe the information revealed feels like a relief because you realize others share your thoughts.

Or maybe someone posted on your blog — material lifted from elsewhere ?  Eeeks.  What does that say about you?  Common sense dictates that these are not your words, so accountability lies with the person who posted.  According to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, you are protected somewhat if you didn’t knowingly allow it.  But once you recognize the infringement, you are responsible for taking it down.

Okay, so if someone slams someone you know or reveals some dirt on your competitor on your blog, is that your fault?   Under the federal Communications Decency Act, you aren’t considered the publisher of the comment, therefore, technically you shouldn’t be liable as long as you don’t add to the defamatory remarks.  However, ethically you are responsible for your blog, so to let inflammatory material sit on your blog for any amount of time past discovery is a questionable decision.  Though, if you are into drama, then don’t bother reading comments and see where life takes you.

The whole idea is to keep your risk of liability to a minimum.  Concentrate on your writing.  You don’t have to live with this kind of conflict.  You can create it in your fiction.

What is your take on blogging ethics?  Do you review comments for defamatory or obscene remarks?

Before I started this blog I was concerned about the legal aspects of the written word. Unlike journalism where the reporters’ code is to cross check the fact against at least two sources, this relatively new medium has no checks and balances and only loosely restricted. 

Many years ago, my mom wrote what I consider the first “blog.”  She called it “The Dear Ellen Letters.”

My mother — a visionary in her own right — wrote letters to Ellen, a distant relative, and sent it not only to Ellen, but to all her nearest and dearest relatives and friends.  The letter was a potpourri of life’s events and some reflections..  The difference was that my mom’s Dear Ellen letters were sent to a contained target audience.  No one was g0ing to sue her if she misreported, misunderstood, or miss quoted.

Today’s blogs are ubiquitous.  They have morphed into webettes (my word for mini websites) that carry links, comments, and images.  For most, bloggers are clueless about their vulnerablity to the legal system.  Their liabilities include copyright infringement, obscenity and indecency both in language and images, and defamation. 

You probably know about the blog wars waged in cyberspace and the impact of internet bullying  (The suicide of a depressed Missouri teen last year caused by internet bullying generated cries for new legislation ).  These underscore the point about just how dangerous thoughtless and callous words can be.

To keep your blog within the legal limits, here’s a definition of infringement:

If you copy or publish written work without the consent of the author, this is copyright infringement.  Cutting and pasting text, an image, or a comment that seems like an everyday object is still considered infringement.  Remember cutting and pasting material from another’s website and putting it in yours is robbery.  It prevents the orignator from pulling his full share of the traffic to his site.  To avoid this, get written permission or an emailed permission (and print a hard copy) .

If anyone can share knowledge or ideas about the legal aspects of blogging, please feel free to contribute. 

Tomorrow I will share my thoughts about linking and allowing others to post on your blog.

I hate overpaying. I have on occasion overpaid for a one of a kind item, an impulsive buy, or was just too lazy to do the research.

However, overpaying one’s fair share of taxes never made sense to me. We always read about the IRS chasing down abusive tax evaders. Apparently, according to the IRS, there are over a million Americans who don’t deduct enough.

Here are some items I picked off the IRS website under the category Tax Law Changes for Individuals (2007) that I thought might help you when you tackle your 1040 this year. By the way, there are 24 listed, so if this information sparks your interest, why don’t you visit http://www.irs.gov/formspubs/content/0,,id=178012,00.html

Mileage Deduction - The way gas prices have been rising, it makes sense to deduct for mileage. For 2007, the standard mileage rate for the cost of operating your car for business use is 48.5 cents per mile. Also, don’t forget to include mileage deductions to and from medical appointments or for moving purposes, which increased to 20 cents a mile. Car expenses and use of the standard mileage rate are explained in chapter 4 of Publication 463, Travel, Entertainment, Gift, and Car Expenses. See Transportation under What Medical Expenses Are Includable in Publication 502 or Travel by car under Deductible Moving Expenses in Publication 521, Moving Expenses. The standard mileage rate for the cost of operating your car for charitable purposes remains 14 cents per mile. And in 2008, the standard mileage deduction will be 50.5 cents per mile.

Tax Preparation Fees- The pain of filling out 1040’s every is mitigated by the fact that you are allowed to deduct the cost of hiring an accountant or tax preparer as well as the cost of purchasing tax preparation software. Check out IRS Publication 529 at www.irs.gov/publications/529/ar02.html#d0e268.

Job Search – If you were looking for a job, expenses involving local lodging, travel, transportation, phone calls, copying costs, etc. are deductible. http://www.irs.gov/publications/p529/ix01.html.

State and Local Sales Taxes – Did you know that you can deduct the sales taxes paid on large purchases such as cars or boats, if you itemize on a Schedule A form? However, you will not be allowed to deduct both state income and sales taxes in the same year. You must choose one or the other (of course, the one with the higher of the two amounts) A handy sales tax deduction calendar can be found on the IRS website at http://apps.irs.gov/app/stdc/.

Mortgage Insurance Premiums — This is new for 2007. Mortgage insurance premiums are now tax–deductible. According to the IRS, the premiums must be connected to home acquisition debt, however, and issued by a ”qualified” mortgage insurer such as the Veterans Administration, Federal Housing Administration, or any of a number of private mortgage insurers. (You can find this amount in Box 4 of Form 1098, sent to you by your mortgage lender.) For more on this and other mortgage-related deductions, check out IRS Publication 936 online at irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p936.pdf.

Medical and Dental Services — List what you spent on medical expenses in 2007 (doctor visits, tests, healthcare premiums, drugs, hospitalization costs not covered by insurance, prosthetics, eyeglasses, false teeth etc.) Check you list against the IRS list of what services are and are not deductible. You may deduct any amount that exceeds 7.5% of your adjusted gross income. http://www.irs.gov/irb/2007_IRB/ar12.html

Child and Dependent Care Credit – If you have paid work related expenses for care of one child/or dependent, you can take the $3,000 credit. For two or more take $6,000, when figuring the credit. According to the IRS, if you paid work-related expenses for the care of two or more qualifying persons, the $6,000 limit does not need to be divided equally among them. For example, if your work-related expenses for the care of one qualifying person are $3,200 and your work-related expenses for another qualifying person are $2,800, you can use the total, $6,000. For more on this credit and to see if you qualify, check out IRS Publication 503 http://www.irs.gov/publications/p503/ar02.html#d0e2169 .

Home-Office Deduction - As writers, most of us have home offices and of course, it seems intuitive to take this deduction. I recall reading somewhere though, that if you take this deduction and you do not make money from your writing, that when you sell the house, the home office deduction you took may be subtracted from the profits of the house sale. So, check with an accountant to see if that is still the case. http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p535

Other Expenses — Any fees or expenses paid to produce or collect income or manage and maintain income–generating property, such as rental apartments, is also tax deductible up to the 2% AGI limit. Common deductions in this category include safe deposit box rental fees, service charges on dividend reinvestment plans, and depreciation on home computers used for investing. http://www.irs.gov/formspubs/content/0,,id=178012,00.html

Taking the Standard Deduction - No kidding. A recent government study found that one million or more Americans overpay their taxes by taking the “standard” deduction instead of itemizing.

Oh, one more new IRS directive. This is meant for all those who embellish their tax deductions. Now there is a penalty for erroneous claim for refund or credit. If you file a claim for a refund or credit on your income tax form in an excessive amount, and you did not have a reasonable basis for explanation, you will be penalized. Exactly what that means is not specifically mentioned, but the penalty can apply to any claim filed after May 25, 2007.

For those who omitted a deduction: File Form 1040X to amend your return.

If you go to www.irs.gov to retrieve income tax forms, you will find they are writable pdfs. This is great because no one has to wonder whether you wrote a 6 or 0…or how exactly is your last name spelled. Also, e-filing makes your refund easier and faster. However, if you decide to print the forms from the IRS site, you will not be able to save the information. You will only be able to save a blank form. Also, if you print a hard copy, you will see the 1040 will print out on two pages. The second page will not have any identification on it. Be sure that all sheets have your name and SSN, even if you have to handwrite it on the top.

I’m not a financial person. I just gathered some interesting tax information for you to consider when you do your taxes. If you have current tax software, it will walk you through all the 1040 line items. For detailed information, you should go to your accountant or call the IRS Help Line.