Naomi Said:

As a freelance writer, can I bill a company separately for materials I purchase?

We Answered:

I'm a graphic art student at college and we used "11th edition Graphic Artist's Guild Handbook of Pricing & Ethical Guidelines ISBN: 0-932102-12-3"

This is a good book. I recommend you get it.

Graphic Artists Guild Handbook: Pricing & Ethical Guidelines, 11th Edition is the industry bible, containing information all graphic artists and their clients need to buy and sell work in a totally professional manner. This edition has been revised and updated to provide all the information you need to compete in an industry moving at lightning speed.

Book includes the following:

1.) The latest pricing surveys and terms for both buyers and sellers
2.) Model contracts and terms to adapt to your needs
3.) Revised salary information with expanded job descriptions
4.) A chapter chock-full of additional resources and references to enhance and expand your career efforts
5.) Copyright information
6.) An updated chapter on digital media and web design to help you keep pace

Chapters include:
1. Professional Relations
2. Legal Rights & Issues
3. Professional Issues
4. Technology Issues
5. Essential Business Practices
6. Salaries & Trade Customs
7. Graphic Design Prices & Trade Customs
8. Web Design & Other Media
9. Illustration Prices & Trade Customs
10. Cartooning Prices & Trade Customs
11. Animation Prices & Trade Customs
12. Surface Design Prices & Trade Practices
13. Standard Contracts & Business Tools
14. The Graphic Artist Guild
15. Resources & References

Book Design

A basic fee has always included an initial consultation with the publisher, packager (firm that sells a finished book to a publisher) or other contractor to discuss the project; analysis of the manuscript or designing representative sample pages; preparation of layouts or manuscript markups; and presentation of completed design (also called layouts).

Extra Charges
Supervision or art direction of an art program, including hiring and coordinating illustrators or photographers, extra conference time, trips to the publisher and time spent doing other production work, is billed at an hourly design rate. The cost of specially commissioned work and other supplies is traditionally a billable expense.

Billable Expenses for Graphic Designers
Graphic Designers traditionally bill clients for all expenses involved in executing an assignment, while textile designers and illustrators often absorb expenses for such things as art supplies because those costs tend to be modest. Necessary costs related to producing a job, such as model fees, prop rental, research time, production or printing, shipping and travel expenses are routinely billed to the client separately. These expenses, even as estimates, are generally agreed upon and set down in the origional written agreement. Often a maximum amount is itemized beyond which a designer may not incur costs without the client's authorization.

Fee for Textbook Design

College Text
Complex: $5,900-$13,000
Average: $3,000-$6,500
Simple: $2,725-$5,000

Each additional trade in series (% of fee; College Text)
Complex: 100%-300%
Average: 100%-200%
Simple: 100%

Elementary-High school Text
Complex: $4,875-$9,000
Average: $2,000-$5,000
Simple: $2,700-$3,500

Each additional trade in series (% of fee; Elementary-High school Text)
Complex: 50%-100%
Average: 50%-100%
Simple: 50%-100% (% of fee)

"Complex" designs requires special treatment for each page, 2-4 colors of text, or other books of greater complexity than average format. Usually foreign language texts, complicated workbooks, catalogs or illustrated books.

"Average" includes front matter, part opening, chapter opening text comprising from 3-6 levels of heads, tables and/or charts, extracts, footnotes, diagrams, illustrations, photographs and simple back matter. Laid out on a grid system.

"Simple" includes title page, chapter opening, double page spread of text and spreads for front matter. Mostly straight text with up to three levels of heads, simple tables and/or art.

Hope this helps.