Conventional wisdom tells us that self-employment is filled with pitfalls -- and that you might as well face the big one: You'll never make as much money working for yourself as working for others.

Not so, says Linda Stern, author of Money-Smart Secrets for the Self-Employed (Random House, 1997, $20.00). She emphasizes that with good financial management, self-employment can not only be more fun than working for someone else, but more lucrative as well. The subtitle of the book says it all: "Make more and keep more when you work for yourself."

Stern, a nationally syndicated newspaper columnist and contributing editor of Home Office Computing, speaks from experience. In the mid-1980's, as a longtime financial reporter for the Knight-Ridder newspaper chain, she realized she needed to make some life changes.

"I was having babies and covering tax legislation," Stern said in a phone interview from her Takoma Park, Maryland home. As the conflict between job and family began to mount, she decided her growing family needed her more than her employer did. And a lucky break paved the way to self-employment.

"The day I left my reporter job I was offered a column with Reuters (news services)," Stern says. That sole client was her basis for her freelance career, now in its twelfth year. "I marketed aggressively, and after five years, my husband went freelance, and I supported him."

The idea for Money Smart Secrets came about when Stern gave her collection of columns a good look. "This should really be a book," she recalls. "I felt strongly that there were a lot of books on business and finance, but not much for self-employment. I saw a need for advice in a new area: personal finances of people running their own business."

Stern has put together a jewel of a self-employment manual. Starting with the introductory chapter, "Prosperity Without Paychecks," she covers such topics as recordkeeping, taxes, insurance, billing, and long-term planning. Stern provides sample spreadsheets for such areas as estimating taxes, home office deductions, fee setting, and cash flow predictions, with computations that are easily understandable even for those of us who are spreadsheet impaired.

Stern's practical, down-to-earth advice sparkles; the book's design and layout are outstanding, and the graphics eye-catching. Summaries at the end of each chapter reinforce the critical points, and the right-hand page headers indicating the precise subject matter covered on each page make it easy to find what you're looking for.

Stern gives us nuts-and-bolts entrepreneurial strategies like "100 Strategic Saving Secrets" covering such topics as phone charges, banking and travel, as well as concise, comprehensive tax information and a well thought-out outline for putting together a business plan.

While it's easy for such a book to swiftly become obsolete, Stern is diligent about keeping her book -- now in its third printing -- up to date. "Because tax laws change all the time," says Stern, "I update figures for each printing."

As a journalist based in the Washington, D.C. area-- the hub of tax law creation-- Stern believes it's critical for the self-employed to stay current with the latest financial benefits and pitfalls. She does so by talking to people in the business, and recommends the Internet for up-to-the-minute developments.

"There are some excellent Web sites on tax law," Stern says. "You can also look up the Web pages of the national accounting firms."

She recommends another way to keep up: consult the professionals. "I'm a 'do it yourselfer,'" she says, "but if you can find a good tax attorney or accountant, it's well worth the money."

Especially if you're in it for the long haul. Stern admits that she began freelancing as a temporary fix, not a career choice. "I originally went into self-employment as a stopgap while the children were small. I'd planned to return to work when they got older, then I discovered the freedom."

She's not talking about the freedom to work 365 days a year. Budgeting for and taking time off, says Stern, is crucial to your well-being as well as that of your business. She practices what she preaches: last summer she and her husband were able to afford to take a month's vacation.

"I firmly believe you can make more money self-employed doing the same job you did working for an employer," she says. "And you own your own life. When you work for yourself, you might have other things to worry about, but freedom isn't one of them."

That freedom also means the dilemma of setting hourly fees. Stern has this advice for those operating within a Bellingham-sized marketplace: Aim high.

"The D.C. market is very high-end, but I personally know people who are working for $15 and $100 an hour, going after the same clients," she says. "It's the one charging $100 an hour who's getting the jobs." Even in a low-end market, she recommends "charging from the mid-point on up."

Working for yourself in a place like Whatcom County -- close to the two urban centers of Seattle and Vancouver, B.C. -- presents unique marketing opportunities, says Stern. "You don't have to work with people in the same geographic area. Network regionally instead, with postcards and letters."

She adds, "You can actually charge less than urban levels-people are going out of the big city to find affordable professionals." And go beyond your small town to attend regional or national conventions and seminars, she advises. "Get face to face with colleagues."

What does Stern see that's new since her book came out? "There are more options for retirement," she says, and mentions new tax incentives like Roth and educational IRA's. She also sees more opportunities to manage money online, but at present, she's taking a conservative stance. "Right now, I monitors investments online but don't really invest."

Outside of the investment arena, Stern sees some additional trends that bode well for the self-employed. "There's definitely a lot more understanding and appreciation for people who work for themselves," she says. "And the corporate world is doing a lot more outsourcing."

Stern says that the presently booming economy provides the self-employed with more options. "When you're in a good economy, deciding which area to work in can be very hard," she says.

You also have to make decisions on what level you want to take your business. "You can stay small, work at home, and keep stress low," Stern advises. "Or you can get as much business as you can, grow your company, and if you need to, pass on work to others.

"You can make hay while the sun shines, and put money away for slower years, but then you're into another level of stress," she says. "There are some instances where growth is not always good. But the good economy gives us wiggle room."

Money-Smart Secrets for the Self-Employed ends on a high note; Stern offers techniques for assessing the state of your business and gives a step-by-step scheme for what she believes is a critical step for growing your income: "How to have an annual planning meeting by yourself."

Successful self-employment is all about clarity of vision and purpose, Stern asserts.

"And I'm a big believer in life planning." Whatever the state of the economy, she says, "the best way to decide on a direction is to think five or ten years into the future, and consider which choice gets you closer to your goals."