Once you have your printed copies in hand, you will need to mail them to subscribers and published authors and artists. For promotional purposes, you may also wish to mail complimentary copies to editors who review magazines, libraries, or various individuals.
If you have a magazine that weighs less than one pound and you have printed fewer than 250 copies, your best choice for shipping is USPS First-Class mail. If you have more than 250 copies, and you mail your magazine more than once a year, it may be worthwhile to pay for a bulk mail permit, presort your magazines, and mail them at the bulk mail rate. If your magazine weighs more than one pound, you can save money by mailing it via USPS media mail. Another option available for magazines is the periodicals rate, but you have to meet very detailed regulations to qualify for these rates, and you can be subject to postal audits. Most small press publishers will find that researching, understanding, and striving not to violate these regulations (which fill a binder) is hardly worth the savings.
7. Pay your taxes
If you sell individual copies or subscriptions to your magazine, you must include this information on your federal income taxes, either as hobby or business income. Which way should you report it? Because you can only deduct hobby expenses that exceed two percent of your adjusted gross income, you will actually pay lower taxes if you treat your magazine as a business rather than a hobby. But in order to treat it as a business, you must be able to prove that you have a profit motive, and eventually you will need to turn a profit.
In some states, you may have to pay sales tax if you sell your magazine to residents of your own state. Consult your state’s department of taxation for details.
Take the Plunge
Starting your own small circulation magazine may seem daunting at first, but if you follow these seven steps, you’ll be sure to cover all of the major bases.