Setting Up A Home Office
Everyone who works at home must have the proper equipment. A writer is no different.
The most important thing is a good chair to sit in. It will determine how you feel while
sitting at your desk and computer. A good chair has arm rests and back support. You
should have a foot stool to rest your feet on. It will help your circulation and you will
not get as tired.
Your computer screen should be as big as you can afford. Mine is 19 inches and I find
it much easier to see on line and off. There are many new monitors now and some of
them are very expensive but easier on the eyes.
You should have your computer monitor at eye level, neither looking up or down all
the time. Your neck will thank you for it, I am sure.
You should have a desk that has plenty of room to lay your papers around without
putting them on the floor. You can find many non wood desks now to fit your needs.
Just make sure it is not too big for your home office.
You should have a room used exclusively for your home office. If you intend to claim
business use of your home, the IRS demands it of you. Your home office should not
feel too confining. If you have a window place your desk where you can see out of the
window. Your room should not be in the main part of your home, if you can help it.
That extra room over the garage would be perfect if you can claim it for your own.
You should definitely have a filing cabinet and storage for your office supplies, paper,
pens, cd's, ink cartridges and etc. Make sure all of these items are labeled and where
you can get to them easily.
You have to have a printer. How could you get along without one? It does not have to
be the most expensive one on the market. Find a reliable one that works well with your
computer's operating system.
A scanner comes in handy but is not absolutely necessary. I use mine as a copier and I
find that very convenient. You do not have to run out to a copy shop every time you
need copies of something that is not on your computer's hard drive.
A writer needs reference books, a current dictionary, a book on the rules of writing,
and a thesaurus. You must have Internet access or you would not be reading this. If
you can go online you have all these resources at your fingertips.
You should have a telephone line for your computer and a separate phone for your
business calls. If you cannot afford two phone lines, or a phone line and a cellular
phone, some ISP's offer a phone messaging service. A window will pop up and tell you
the number of the person calling you.
You can also hire someone to build you a web site or learn to build one of your own.
With some of today's software it is not all that hard. If you use Microsoft Word (TM)
you can probably use web site editing software that comes along with a small
business web site or you can use one of the simpler web site builders with the free
web pages you can have with most ISP's. A web site is good to advertise yourself and
publish your own works if you would like.
In today's world a writer can be published in numerous ways. The Internet and
computers make it a whole lot easier and rewarding.
Set up your home office today and get serious about your writing.
Lavenia Ann Claman
Aspiring Writers
copyright November 17, 2003
All rights reserved
Everyone who works at home must have the proper equipment. A writer is no different.
The most important thing is a good chair to sit in. It will determine how you feel while
sitting at your desk and computer. A good chair has arm rests and back support. You
should have a foot stool to rest your feet on. It will help your circulation and you will
not get as tired.
Your computer screen should be as big as you can afford. Mine is 19 inches and I find
it much easier to see on line and off. There are many new monitors now and some of
them are very expensive but easier on the eyes.
You should have your computer monitor at eye level, neither looking up or down all
the time. Your neck will thank you for it, I am sure.
You should have a desk that has plenty of room to lay your papers around without
putting them on the floor. You can find many non wood desks now to fit your needs.
Just make sure it is not too big for your home office.
You should have a room used exclusively for your home office. If you intend to claim
business use of your home, the IRS demands it of you. Your home office should not
feel too confining. If you have a window place your desk where you can see out of the
window. Your room should not be in the main part of your home, if you can help it.
That extra room over the garage would be perfect if you can claim it for your own.
You should definitely have a filing cabinet and storage for your office supplies, paper,
pens, cd's, ink cartridges and etc. Make sure all of these items are labeled and where
you can get to them easily.
You have to have a printer. How could you get along without one? It does not have to
be the most expensive one on the market. Find a reliable one that works well with your
computer's operating system.
A scanner comes in handy but is not absolutely necessary. I use mine as a copier and I
find that very convenient. You do not have to run out to a copy shop every time you
need copies of something that is not on your computer's hard drive.
A writer needs reference books, a current dictionary, a book on the rules of writing,
and a thesaurus. You must have Internet access or you would not be reading this. If
you can go online you have all these resources at your fingertips.
You should have a telephone line for your computer and a separate phone for your
business calls. If you cannot afford two phone lines, or a phone line and a cellular
phone, some ISP's offer a phone messaging service. A window will pop up and tell you
the number of the person calling you.
You can also hire someone to build you a web site or learn to build one of your own.
With some of today's software it is not all that hard. If you use Microsoft Word (TM)
you can probably use web site editing software that comes along with a small
business web site or you can use one of the simpler web site builders with the free
web pages you can have with most ISP's. A web site is good to advertise yourself and
publish your own works if you would like.
In today's world a writer can be published in numerous ways. The Internet and
computers make it a whole lot easier and rewarding.
Set up your home office today and get serious about your writing.
Lavenia Ann Claman
Aspiring Writers
copyright November 17, 2003
All rights reserved
Aspiring Writers Magazine
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