Having done the hiatus thing myself my advice: talk to everyone you used to work with or know from previous jobs. Renew your professional contacts and follow up with any referrals or leads you get. Finding jobs through contacts and colleagues will almost always turn up more solid leads than filling out applications online or digging through job boards.

Contracting/freelancing can work too, but you still have to find the work. Those budgets got crunched too. Referrals and word of mouth work best for finding freelance work, too. You might want to look into agencies and contract shops (disclaimer: 10X Management represents me as a freelancer).