If you would like to make a steady stream of income as an online writer there are a number of different ways you can approach this. We have all seen the listings for places like Contently and other 'content farms'. The problem with most of these sites is that there are a large number of writers of varying skill levels vying for the top spots and not only do you have to start at the very bottom but you will basically work for minimal fees, or even free until you build an adequate following of traffic.

Sites like these stay alive because many writers will sacrifice their own, high-quality, original content for the opportunity to win the big prize at the end of the rainbow – at least in the beginning. When it becomes apparent that there is a long line to wait in before you reach the golden apple, many will give up, while the site gets to keep their work and attract traffic over and over again.

There are much better way to earn you daily bread. I'm going to give you a few ideas for places where you can look to find writing work. I'm going to skip the obvious places like online writing classifieds sites such as Elance, and also Craigslist, because I know you're already scoping these places out periodically.

These are a few ideas that will lead you in the direction of finding work or even a permanent position of your very own. Work that is perhaps not advertised yet, or that a customer may not even know they need. Of course you should be keeping your own blog to attract traffic and readers and for use as your online portfolio. Always make sure you post some of your best work to you blog.

Okay, so these are the ideas that have worked for me in the past when I've needed work fast. Some of them will only garner you a temporary position, some are clearly project based, and some have the potential of becoming long-term arrangements. If executed properly however, and you have the skill to do the work, at least one of them will bring you some income.

Knock On Doors Online Style

I know we're all really focused on getting traffic and clients to our own sites, but the techniques that some door-to-door salesmen have used in the past can work now as well. The days of a business not having a web presence are gone. Just about anyone who truly wants to succeed in their chosen field will have at a minimum, a blog or a simple website or social network presence.

Pick-out some keywords for fields that you have an interest in, then do a search. If you want local businesses (helpful for this approach as you can actually go and physically meet with them) put your town or locale in with the keywords so that you get local results.

Skip the folks on page one, they aren't going to feel they need your help at all. As you look down the second page of results, see if any of the businesses pop-out at you and visit their page. Based on their search placement, they may be ready for some help with content. Use your best personal sales letter approach to feel them out. You'd be surprised what you can turn up using this method.

Run Your Own Ad

This is still my favorite method of turning up any kind of work. I netted one of my very best long-term jobs this way and still swear by it as a means to reaching the people who need what you have to offer – and not just in the online arena. I've done all kinds of work that resulted from my own personal ad.

The key to making this method work for you, is to make sure you are brutally honest in your wording. If you want to work only 3 hours a day, then say so. If you have amazing communication skills, tell them and give them examples of what you can do. In short, sell yourself honestly, and give a concise description of what you want and what you can offer in return. This has the added benefit of opening you up to areas you may not have considered on your own for attracting new writing jobs.

I hope this article was helpful to you. If you liked it and would like to receive more information and writing tips, sign-up here at The Market List and connect with me directly.