10 Harsh Truths I Learned from Writing for a Living 1. You're the go-to-guy for FREE writing, editing, and proofreading for family and friends 2. People expect you to be a magician of words 3. Your whole life will revolve around deadlines 4. The Internet will ruin you 5. You have limited artistic freedom 6. You will be writing about boring topics 7. You need to actually talk to people and be really good at it 8. You will be a sellout to become the writer you always wanted to be 9. You won’t see your name in the byline 10. Your work only "exists" if people actually read it