Question regarding employment while an International student in the US

[jmato012]

Hi, 

I have a question regarding employment regulations for international students in the US.

I understand that as an international student in the US, you are not allowed to work off campus, and not more than 20 hours per week. That much is clear.  My question is, does this apply to publishing? In the simplest example, if you have a story/article and want to sell it to a magazine in a freelance capacity (i.e. you're not employed by them), can you do it? I couldn't find any solid information about this online. It's not employment in the traditional sense, but you're still getting paid. 

If you have knowledge about F1 VISA regulations, I'd appreciate some clarification on the matter. 

Thanks!

[TakeruK]

This is a question best posed to your school's international student office. 

One thing might make it cleaner though: if you were paid in your home country instead of the US. I don't know if it matters whether you were physically in the US when you did your writing or not though. Again, talking to your international student office or a lawyer might be a good idea since it's not worth risking your student status from non-expert opinions!