Earlier this month I mentioned that you should be putting together gift idea lists and related holiday posts. I realized I still hadn’t gotten around to mine, so it’s time. Here are my top ten gift ideas for freelance writers for the 2008 holiday season:

1. Books – Sure, this is a given. Writers love books. More specifically, give them the gift of books that will help them grow their careers. Here are some of my favorites:
2. E-books – If the freelance writer in your life is a Web writer, they may have an appreciation for E-books. Here are two e-books ideal for the new writer trying to jump-start their freelance writing career (disclaimer: the first e-book is my own):
3. Subscriptions – Consider getting your favorite freelance writer a subscription they can use throughout the new year – a subscription to a writing magazine, to a publication they’d eventually like to write for themselves, or to a service like WritersMarket.com, where they can look for publishers to pitch articles to.
4. A Website – All freelance writers can benefit from a website, but many don’t know how to get started. Consider buying them a nice template, custom Web design, or Web design software. Or, get them a gift certificate / card to a Web host or domain registrar.
5. Business Software – Freelancers need to deal with a lot of financial and business-oriented tasks. Most would benefit from some decent accounting software or customer management software.
6. Green PCs and Notebooks – Do you know a freelance writer trying to go green? Consider getting them a new, low-cost cloud PC or notebook like the Cherry Pal PC or the CloudBook from Everex.
7. Reference Materials – Every freelance writer needs reference materials. Consider buying them a new thesaurus “>thesaurus, the AP style guide
   , or a subscription to a service like HighBeam Research this holiday season.
8. Some Time Off – Freelancers are notorious for overworking themselves with long hours. This holiday season would be the perfect time to “make a date” with that writer in your life – buy show tickets, take them away with you on a day trip, or just make a date to see a movie or spend some social time with friends or family.
9. Office Supplies – Sure, they may sound like a boring gift, but the cost can add up and writers would probably appreciate it. Get them some printer paper or ink (which can get expensive these days), some new pens, a nice notebook or planner, a new calculator to help with invoicing, or maybe even a collection of business forms that might come in handy.
10. Images – Is the freelance writer in your life also a blogger? Consider getting them a subscription to a stock image site, or prepay for a set number of images at a site like StockXpert.com. Images help to make blog posts more attractive to readers, and getting decent ones isn’t always easy (even at $1.00 or so per image for some of the decent services, it adds up for a frequent blogger, especially if they’re not making money through their blogging).

I hope these gift ideas for freelance writers gave you something to consider. And hey… if all else fails, we do like to do more than write! So get the writer in your life anything you think they would enjoy or be able to put to good use. :)

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. However any affiliate links used on this blog are to products I am comfortable wholeheartedly recommending.