My drawings are really poor, so it bugs me when I get an idea for a character for a fanfiction or something, I can only write, and writing never gets every detail =(

So my question is, is it possible to become good at drawing? Or am I doomed because of lack of natural talent.

I ask because I have tried, with limited results

Thanks! ^.^

I've been drawing since I was a child...and I'm still highly critical of my skills, despite praise I receive.

Don't expect to get something down first shot, and if you have problems with something, sketch it out multible times. =)

Just keep practicing and study from real life. Fine people to pose for you, or if you catch your cat or dog napping, do quick sketches of them before they move!

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Zephyer had this to say about John Romero:
Of course. But it takes years of practice...

I've been drawing since I was a child...and I'm still highly critical of my skills, despite praise I receive.

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Just my opnion. I don't have musical talent, but I could learn and become good, just never great.

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Trent Model 2000 was programmed to say:
I think, if you have the natural talent, at anything, you can become great or stay good, if you don't, you can become good.

Just my opnion. I don't have musical talent, but I could learn and become good, just never great.

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You're a smart man.

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Zephyer thought this was the Ricky Martin Fan Club Forum and wrote:
Of course. But it takes years of practice...

I've been drawing since I was a child...and I'm still highly critical of my skills, despite praise I receive.

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I've been drawing ever since I have been able to hold a pencil in my hand... yet most of the time I think my drawings look like crap and I am always telling myself that it could be so much better.

Its really your perspective on things. I've noticed that a lot of people who want to take up drawing expect to pick up a pencil and be able to draw a masterpiece in 5 minutes. I do my drawings fairly fast, and fast is considered taking a little over 2 hours on a serious one. When I draw, I dont worry about how it will turn out, I just concentrate on each and every line. Not the whole picture.

Since you are seaking help, the most advice people will give you is to practice a lot. You can't just expect to have beginners luck or draw 100+ sucky drawings and be amazing the next day. It takes a lot of time and a lot of patience. You have to accept your work in order to be satisfied. If you don't like what you've done to a drawing, then change it. You really need a clear image in your mind when drawing it, and if not, you won't do very well or just create something completely abstract.

[ 01-25-2003: Message edited by: Alleria Qui'farush ]

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Archer-Penguin had this to say about Optimus Prime:
I see all of you drawing really well and neato and you are so lucky because if you have an idea, you can just draw it and have a visual.

My drawings are really poor, so it bugs me when I get an idea for a character for a fanfiction or something, I can only write, and writing never gets every detail =(

So my question is, is it possible to become good at drawing? Or am I doomed because of lack of natural talent.

I ask because I have tried, with limited results

Thanks! ^.^

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Writing should never try to capture every detail--that's where a lot of amateur writers screw up. The key is to show the essential makeup of a character, and let the reader fill in details.

Over-describing is almost as bad as over-explaining.

But I needed a lot of practice on top of that.

I personally have been drawing ever since I was a little kid, but I didn't start trying to draw musculature til I was in around 6th grade (and then all the guys had overdeveloped chests and arms, looking like gorillas), posing characters showed up around 9th grade, and clothing styles didn't really show up until a year or two ago. So I'm a firm believer in intuitive leaps of inspiration; one day it'll click in your head and you'll take the next big step, at which point you'll refine, refine, refine...then take the next big step. Can't force it, can't trick yourself. Classes might give you an excuse to practice new things, but they can't impart knowledge like more academic classes can.

The important thing is to go at your own comfortable pace, don't be afraid to try things even if they look silly or bizarre (some of my leaps forward came after getting frustrated and frenetically drawing something I meant to be a joke or caricature), and don't over-criticize yourself. Very few people thrive on constant criticism.

And most artists, no matter how easy their work looks like it was for them to do, have to struggle with each and every piece. You probably only see their finished work; you don't see the trashcan full of crumpled rejects, the places where the paper is almost worn through because it's been erased on so many times, or the years of practice that it took for the artist to get where they are.

Just keep on practicing. Maybe you'll do a lot of bad stuff to start out with, but I guarantee you'll do less and less as time goes by. And remember these words of Calvin Coolidge:

"Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence.

Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.

Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.

Education will not; the world is full of educated failures.

Keep Believing.

Keep Trying.

Persistence and Determination alone are omnipotent."

"No! "

while the other man in my life - a 6 month old - was demanding a late-night snack.

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Aanile had this to say about Punky Brewster:
Practice, alot.

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Sounds weird...but I barely ever draw. but somehow, I get these creative spurts.

Every once and a while I have the itch to pick up a pencil/pen and draw. It's only ever brought out 3 decent drawings, and my one and only poem.

But they are pretty much once a month...or less.

Like most things, just keep plugging away and you'll get better.