When you start or operate a business, you almost certainly will have to acquire equipment and other property. Even for indie authors who have very few business items – such as a desk and a computer – some of this can be deducted from your Federal taxes.

The expense of purchasing any property that has a useful life beyond a year often can be deducted over a few years. In fact, usually the entire cost of this expense cannot be deducted in a single tax year but must be spread out. In tax lingo, deducting the cost of this property is called depreciation.

Business property that qualifies for a deduction through depreciation includes office furniture, buildings, machinery and equipment. There are limits to how many years a deduction can be taken via depreciation – even if you’re still using the item.

As indie writers only need relatively inexpensive equipment (at least compared to machinery and buildings), the amount of deduction that can be taken usually is small. Still, it will reduce the amount of taxes you owe the Federal government – and therefore your state government, too – and so is worth taking.