I recently started a new character and I'm role-playing a former Arena champion from the Imperial City who fled to Skyrim for a reason that would take me too long to explain (see the dead-is-dead thread if you're really interested in the back story).

Either way, my character, an Imperial named Vlarimil Draconis is looking to start a new, simple life in Skyrim. Of course, eventually I'll get into all the action but right now I'm working for Hod in Riverwood chopping wood. I've played this game for many, many hours (hundreds) and not once have I chopped wood. I was surprised to see that you can get 5 gold for every piece of wood you bring him.

I went ahead and went to "work" for Hod for an entire day (in-game of course) and I netted around 600 gold. Pretty darn good really. Much more than I'd figure I would have made doing it. It got me thinking, what other ways can you earn good gold doing honest work?

I loved to play as Orc who owns Breezehome and goes to the plains every day to collect Alchemy stuff and it was very fun.

I guess you could also play as a hunter, who collects and sells hides. Or maybe a miner. But it seems that being a lumberjack it the only way to keep getting what you're looking for (wood) over and over. Eventually the ores would run out and you'd have to travel all over the entire province.

Every time I start a new character, I always spend the first few hours (irl) chopping wood to sell to Hod. Makes getting Breezehome and all the furnishings faster than running all over hell and high water dragging loot back to sell.

Then I just raid a certain camp north of whiterun for a mammoth tusk, transmute spell book and all the iron ore I can pick. Then hand the tusk over to Ysolda so we can get hitched right away, and turn all that iron ore into sweet sassy molassy! (gold, son. pure gold)

Bounty hunter for the Jarl(s). I've never done it, just the one or two that they send you on, I think it's perpetual.It would be a job though.

Honest work? Nothing in me is honest
True, you work full day chopping wood and get 600g.
Then @ night, go sneak into Arcadia's Shop..steal big time, then sell to the thieves guild. + 600g
So 1 day you earn 1.2k!
If u dont sleep