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When you work from your home, chances are good you are the only IT person you have. You have to make sure your modem works, your computer works, and that your power supply is always uninterrupted. After all, if you can't communicate with others you work with, you're not going to be able to run your business or make any money. Instead of hoping for the best, it's time to create a foolproof system for keeping in contact with your clients and others you might need to talk to as you write. While life does happen, your work still needs to go on – regardless of weather mishaps and technology breakdowns.

Stay Powered Up

One of the most common ways that writers lose contact with the rest of the world is when the power goes out. You might only have a desktop computer and when the power is gone, you're done typing for the day. Or are you? Ideally, you should have a laptop and a desktop computer to help you cover your bases. This way, you can have the charged up laptop ready to go, even if the main power supply is off. While you might not be able to access the Internet, you will still be able to type and get work done. But you need to have an alternative power source in case of a power outage – at the very least to give you some time to save your work and to turn your equipment off properly. A UPS (uninterruptible power source) is something which looks like a surge protector, but it contains a battery to help you protect your precious computer and other equipment. It will provide you around an hour of additional power (depending on the power your equipment uses) and it can help you avoid crashes that 'eat' all your work.

Always in Contact

Most people have cell phones these days, so staying in contact is easier than ever. But if you're like many writers, you might not have the number of the client – only their email address. To make sure you can stay in contact, you can either begin to get phone numbers or you can invest in a smart phone which will connect you with your email account any time of the day. iPhones and Blackberries are two of the most popular ways to stay connected to your email box, even if it's just to say your work is stuck in your powered down computer. In addition, you should always have another location where you can work if your internet service or power is out – a coffee shop, local copying center, etc. While it's true you will have to spend money in some places to use these services, it's well worth it to not get behind with your clients and make a bad impression. You never want to tell your client that you can't work unless it's genuinely a true emergency – death in the family, illness, natural disaster, etc. The more connected you are, the more reliable you will seem to your clients. And a reliable writer is one that continues to get assignments in their email box.