(Not strictly game-related, but I'm fishing for just about any help I can get, right now!) Having recently graduated with a degree in graphic/web design, I'm doing what a lot of other job-seekers are doing right now: freelance work (and a crummy part-time job) to tide me over until I can find a stable paycheck somewhere. At first, it was just small graphic design gigs for a few bucks here and there, but I've started taking on bigger jobs for bigger pay, utilizing freelance lead sites like DesignQuote and LimeExchange to find bigger, better paying projects. I've been keeping a pretty steadily increasing pace for a few weeks, now, with a few followup contracts and return clients. Nothing quite as reliable as a full time job would be, but enough that I'd really like to invest in this venture until I find something more stable. I'm pretty new to this whole self-employment thing, and I know that no matter how realistic I try to be about it, I'm going to end up being a little overzealous, a little too eager to get going, which is why I'm trying to clarify some things before I dive too far in. I'm vaguely aware of self-employment laws and regulations. "Vaguely" in the sense that I'm keeping close records of all of my expenses and revenue, knowing that I'll need to report them on my taxes (USA). "Vaguely" in the sense that I've sent in my registration for an LLC so I can be protected should something go wrong. And "vaguely" in the sense that I'm using contracts at every turn to make sure that everything I do is in black-and-white, somewhere. Beyond that, though, I have a lot of questions. Some of them are pretty cut and dry, like... How and when do I need to file my taxes as a self-proprietor? Others are very specific to my situation, like... can I rely on freelancing to tide me over without the crummy part time job, or is there something that the part time job is offering me that I should stick around for? Many of these questions are beyond the scope of what I expect can be answered here, but I'm not quite sure who to ask, and I figured some of you may have been through this before. Should I be talking to a lawyer? A financial consultant? A tax firm? Other self-employed people? Any help that anyone is willing to offer is sincerely appreciated, even if all you can do is tell me who I should be setting up an appointment with. The last thing I want to do is make a vital mistake early in my career, so I'm trying to figure out as much of it as I can.

http://www.sloperama.com/advice/lesson63.htm

Edit: I just re-read your post and realized I could be more helpful.

>How and when do I need to file my taxes as a self-proprietor?

Talk to a tax advisor, like H&R Block for instance.

>can I rely on freelancing to tide me over without the crummy part time job, or is there something that the part time job is offering me that I should stick around for?

The link I provided before should offer some clues on that.

>Should I be talking to a lawyer?

You will want one when you get a contract, so he can help you make sure there aren't any gotchas.

>Other self-employed people?

Yes, that'd be good. See if there's a local Small Business Administration office. They advise for free.

Edit: You live in Camby, Indiana? Read http://www.sloperama.com/advice/lesson24.htm and http://www.sloperama.com/advice/lesson27.htm

[Edited by - Tom Sloper on June 15, 2009 12:15:29 PM]