Yes, if you were in business last year as an author/publisher, you can begin a Schedule C even though no income was earned.
You can also deduct
expenses as long as you can prove that you opened or were in business in the
year expenses were incurred. To be deductible, a business expense must be both
ordinary and necessary.
The IRS expects that if you start a business,
you intend to make money at it. If you don't, your business is likely to be a
hobby, if which case you can only claim expenses to the extent of your hobby
income. To determine if your business is a hobby, the IRS looks at numerous
factors, including the following:
- Do you put
in the necessary time and effort to turn a profit?
- Have you
made a profit in this activity in the past, or can you expect to make one
in the future?
- Do you have
the necessary knowledge to succeed in this field?
- Do you
depend on income from this activity?
- Are your
losses beyond your control?
You report both income (if any) and expenses on
Schedule C/Business Income & Expenses.
TurboTax will
guide you step by step through the process.
·
Type in business
expenses in the search box in the right hand corner of your screen
·
Click jump
to business expenses.
If you do have some income you can enter it on
the same page.
Note: Based on your expenses, you may have to
upgrade to a higher version of TurboTax.
