Digital Point forums was an eye opener for me. I had been toiling away for what seemed like an eternity on Associated Content, Demand Studios, and other online writing sites. I was churning out a minimal living doing this, but I knew that something better had to be out there.

Then one day, I had the pleasure of visiting a blog that changed my outlook on things. The name of the blog is onlinewritingjobs.net and it is run by a man that changed things for me. Not only is the blog great, but good ole Robert is pretty great too.

On this blog and in Associated Content’s forums, Robert pointed out that you an actually market your own work directly on digital point’s forums to private clients. No strings attached, and no bull. You simply post what you have for sale, and you get real time offers and feedback from other members!

This was rather exciting to me, and it changed my writing career.

I headed right over there and started checking it out. When you first sign up, you have to participate in the forums for awhile, and post some comments,etc. After you go through that initial warm up, then you are allowed to post on the site’s “buy/sell” area.

The first day on digital point’s buy sell area I sold nearly one hundred dollars worth of content. From there it just grew more and more.

The best part of digital point was that it taught me to value my work more. I made several contacts, and now I am working directly with a gentleman in a full time gig. This job would never have come along if it had not been for digital point forums.

There are a few things to keep in mind when you sign up there:

-Always request at least half the payment upfront. Do not do work without payment upfront unless they have a very good itrader. itrader is like ebay feedback, and can be found under their user name.

- Be patient! Many people start dropping their prices if their content does not sell the same day. Be patient and the buyers will usually come and find you.

- Never ever bump your thread. You will get banned.

Outside of that, you should have no problems. If you would like to see some threads that actually work as far as how to format the thread, etc, feel free to let me know and I will gladly try to help you with how to put it together.

If you are just getting started writing for the web, then earning a little cash has to be on the list of things you are looking to do. Getting your start is not always easy. Earning money as a writer can seem nearly impossible at first. Inevitably, new writers turn to the online writing sites that litter the web.

While these online writing sites are wonderful at their best, they are horrid at their worst. The key is to find the good ones and not waste time with the others. To that end, I have decided to tout the three online writing websites that helped me the most as a new writer. These websites all have their ups and downs, but they all are beneficial to a new writer.

Here they are:

Associated Content - This web writing giant has had a number of ups and downs over the years, and they certainly are not perfect. One thing I will say about Associated Content is that they are quite punctual with payment and they generally do a good job of keeping your web writing in the search engines. They pay an upfront amount for your work if it is well done, keyworded, optimized for the web, and they do not already have a large amount on the subject. They also pay you a page view bonus each month based on the number of views you garner.

Associated Content also has a special place in my heart for another reason. They awarded me 5000 bucks for a contest.

Demand Studios - Demand Studios is a step up in compensation and expectations. They are a little tougher than AC when it comes to editing, etc. Still, they offer upfront money as well. I earned a great deal of money from them over a year’s time, and they taught me a lot about writing for the web. I highly recommend them to anyone interested in writing for the web and earning money.

Hubpages – Hubpages is a bit different in that they do not pay upfront. Instead you put your adsense code in and are paid on a percentage basis of your views. The thing I love about Hubpages is the fact that you can really garner some serious page views. Also, you are free to add pics, Amazon, Ebay affiliates, and a number of other great earning sites. Finally, Hubpages gives you a fantastic way to build pages that can include video, pics, polls, and more. Hubpages is highly addicting! You can make money on Hubpages!

Hopefully you will check out some of the great websites I have listed, and do not give up. Though you are starting there, you will not finish there if you are dedicated. More earning power will come from these sites over time, and you will quickly find private clients are more than willing to pay for great content!