Hiring an Accountant Versus Doing it Yourself
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Something isn't right.
If you are very busy with work, but cannot afford a few hundred pounds for an accountant, something is wrong. You are either working for peanuts, or are too tight to pay for a good, professional service.
A business turning over £100k doesn't need a full time accountant.
You need an accountant that can help make your life easier by using things such as Receipt Bank and cloud software. And it won't cost more than a few hundred pounds per annum.
Speak to a few of accountants and see what they can do for you.
I would not get hung up on the books and records and would more concentrate on getting an accountant who is familiar with tax and authors. (things like averaging/allowable costs etc)
I have no idea how successful you are but do know, from long distant experience with a writer whose career, at the time, was really just starting but which subsequently flourished, that planning can need done very promptly (as say contracts are being discussed, not after etc) and an accountant ,well versed in the industry, is usually not wasted money.
Ours client, shortly after I left that firm, got passed on to others, far more experienced, when television/film rights started to feature though not sure business books quite sell into the same market.
Not a problem, you can always send me a copy of,
The Online Writer's Companion: A Complete Guide to Earning Your Living as a Freelancer Paperback – 22 Sep 2016
by P. J. Aitken (Author)
I have always believed there is a book in everyone (however terrible the book may be) so may endeavour to scribble something once my bean counting days are over.
If I do I am near guaranteed at least two readers as I have a wife and two grown up children.
I think you need to find an accountant that can also give you some QuickBooks training so that this works for you, plus get you linked up to something like Receipt Bank that can automate a lot of the pain you currently experience as you just take a picture of your receipt/invoice on your phone through the app and it feeds through to your QB Accounts. I don't have any connection to either company other than as an accountancy practice customer. Both online sites have a "Find an accountant" Directory so that you can have a look at the services available in your area along with other factors such as price, qualifications, reputation (not necessarily in that order before I start a war on here!) I wouldn't have thought you would need to have an accountant working for you full time we have clients with Turnovers of over £1 million that don't have a full time accountant! They do have admin/bookkeeping assistance which is of course at a much lower cost. A decent accountant is worth paying more than "mates rates" for as they may be able to save you tax and more importantly your time so that you can concentrate on growing your businesses. You are unlikely to be in North East Scotland where I'm based but if you are and want a chat let me know!
I'm going to be pedantic here and separate "accountants" from "bookkeepers".
It sounds like you could use a "bookkeeper" to get the paperwork into some order on a regular basis. You would only need a very part time one for a few hours a month. They would be self-employed, so you would not need to take the scary step of becoming an employer. They could also make sure that you are invoicing for all your work, ensuring you get all your royalties and managing your debtors. If you are turning over £100K what happens about VAT returns? Yearly/FRS I am guessing!
It's the old "opportunity cost" quandary, if you do it yourself you save £X, if you get someone else to do it, you can be out earning £Y. Which is the greater figure X or Y?