If there was any clearer indication of a very large generational gap it is in terms of what entails proper "work." I’ve always been an avid Internet user, but a few years ago I turned to the Internet to earn part time income in order to pay off some of our debts. Technically, my first work for a company online was with Ebay - selling yard sale discoveries and, eventually, trading antiques. Even though I love writing, online freelance work never seemed very plausible or possible - and most of the sites that promoted any opportunities looked like major scams to me.

Doing Legitimate Work for a Company Online

Online freelance work never entered my mind until the second or third year while I was working as a powerseller on Ebay. I’d just spent three long hours packaging up items for a major shipment, and I was just sick of working on Ebay. The entire process of selling on Ebay consists of taking photos, listing items, packaging and shipping, and dealing with disgruntled customers. The work went around the clock and the mess from packaging was simple atrocious. So one night, I decided to do some Internet research to determine, once and for all, if it really is possible to earn decent income doing work for a company online.

Entering the Fray…And Finally Earning a Solid Income

Earlier in this blog, I wrote a bit about those first few websites I used to earn some income doing online freelance work. The most prominent on my list at the time was Scriptlance , but even there if you plan to work as a writer you have to be willing to churn out articles at a pretty low rate. I’m talking $5 for a 500 to 700 word article. Now that’s hard labor.

However, once I became recognized as worth my salt as a writer, and once I had articles published on the Internet that I could point to, new "buyers" who posted at Scriptlance were more willing to pay a bit more per article. One particular project fascinated me - one guy was looking to hire writers for his blog. Out of curiosity, I did a bit more online research on blogs that were hiring writers and discovered that there’s an entire community of websites and blogs where owners are more than willing to hire excellent writers to create a steady stream of valuable content. College graduates with an English degree must no longer fear a life of squallor and poverty. However, they need to be prepared for the overwhelming onslaught of work that’s available on the web. Yes…real work that pays real well.

It’s Not a Published Novel - But It’s a Job!

The dream of every writer is to publish a novel - but how do you plan to put food on the table or support your family. Is it still fashionable to be a starving writer? The contemporary writer is one who’s a contributor to multiple blogs and websites, building a reputation in the form of a viral meme more powerful than any publication house or agent could ever produce for you. For good writers - the Internet is yours, and if you write well you can be a king.

After about a year performing side jobs for Scriptlance buyers, I applied to become a contributing writer to one website and one blog . Performing as best as I could doing work for a company online, such as these, turned out to be the best opportunity I could have found. After a year or so I found myself promoted up to editor and management status - in effect proving to myself that it really is possible to find success with online freelance work.

The humor in all of it is that at first family and friends viewed the Internet work as all in fun - a side "hobby" that’s just part of my usual computer-obsession. I assured everyone that it was very much a part time job, to no avail. Then one day, one of them asked how much I earn each month through my online freelance work. When I told them, the laughing stopped. Few people understand how quickly and how far the Internet has advanced - and the tremendous opportunities that exist there. That is one reason why I created this blog - to spread the word that there’s an entire online industry that’s booming with opportunities for people who have creative talent.