Get a blog and start making new business acquaintances. (Being in the Valley should not exactly have you hurting for options on that score.)
I've actually had better success finding work through HN and through friends of people I've worked for before (once again no help to someone just starting out).
That's not to say you aren't at a disadvantage, if you're wanting to charge very high rates while being in a third world country, but it's not impossible. Doing the same things suggested by this post, and by other comments, is how you raise your value. You may be raising it from a lower starting point, but it can be raised, and there isn't really a firm upper bound on how high it can go.
Source: I work in an office co-share with a dozen or so web developers in Minneapolis.
Patrick's post is more about consultation rather than freelance work, I wonder whether people prefer to hire remote consultants?
Be good at what you do; your location shouldn't affect your consulting rates.
By way of example, I routinely bill in excess of $100/hour despite being located in Poland. And trust me, I'm working on increasing the value I deliver, and charging appropriately.
Do you know of anyone that bills 20k$ a week in Poland?
OK, it isn't a third world country. And Patrick is an American. But still, with the Internet you don't have to physically live in a well-connected place to make connections.