Tips on becoming a better artist

Hello, everyone! Bo Bo Joe, here! I have often been asked about my art, mainly from people wondering how I got to the level I did. I've often been overwhelmed with these kinds of comments, nearly to embarrassment! I thank everyone for these kinds of comments, but I'm finally going to answer this question the best I can. I'm not necessarily a professional in this category, though, so it's mostly my beliefs on this subject.

Be in the right mindset

There are two ways that you NEVER want to think about your art! These are:

1. I'm a really good artist!
2. My art is absolutely horrible! I hate it!

Instead, keep somewhere in between! Notice what you like about your drawings, and also notice what you dislike. Try to continue with those good qualities, and also try to improve the ones you're not big on. This is why people often see me criticizing my own art multiple times. Trust me, I'll never get out of that habit xD.

Comparing your art

A drawing by Sophiechan90 :)

This is also about the last category, but it's still very different. I've noticed that people often tend to compare their art to others that are considerably better than them (like Mark Crilley, Sophiechan90, etc.), and then they get it in their head somehow that they're so much worse and they'll never be able to get to 

My very first computer drawing in paint (it was January, 2011, and I was 11 years old)

that level. Unfortunately, they have no idea how wrong they are! They will be able to do that kind of art if they, as said in the previous section, are in the right mindset. If this is also a problem for you, then DON'T compare your art to that of others. Just compare it to your own! Notice how much YOU'VE been improving, not how much other people have been. Instead of comparing your art to those people, use them as a goal. If you strive to get there and put your whole into it, you will eventually get there. Of course, note that this kind of improvement will never come overnight. It took years upon years for them to get their art to look that nice, and it will be the same for you. Instead of saying, "Well, they're better than me and I'm really bad compared to them," think, "Maybe if I practice enough I'll be able to do this, too!"

Drawing for a purpose

Never be bothered if you're not getting a whole lot of fans, subscribers, likes, compliments, or whatever. These are purely signs that other people show, and we all know that it's basically impossible to control people's thoughts. If you don't seem to be getting many of these, then don't pout about it! Draw for your own enjoyment! If you don't even like drawing, then why do it? I actually keep a majority of my drawings in private notebooks or in folders.

Practice, practice, practice!

This is just about the most important element of becoming a better artist. Just like anything else, to get better at art you have to practice! I draw every day for hours, normally. I even drew over my vacation! The thing that ticks me off the most, though, is whenever people think that drawing is a natural talent. All I can say is that it's anything but that! You're born with the passion, and that passion is what carries you on to become what you want to be. I've liked to draw my whole entire life, and though I was really really horrible in the beginning, I didn't let that stop me. Instead of doing what most kids liked to do, I could often be found working on an art project. I'm still like that, in a sense. I don't watch TV, go on Facebook, or play video games (though all of those are fun), since all of them are HUGE time suckers. You can be on those for hours and not even notice that any time had passed. Drawing is like that too, but it's definitely worth the time. If you spend a whole bunch of time on your art, you won't regret it! Within 1 year, I guarentee you'll see a significant change.

This isn't for becoming a good artist in General,(sorry :P) But here is a tip for Disney Create. So if you draw a picture, and about half way through it you have to go to bed or something. So, you save it on DC. Well, the next day when you get on there, sometimes if you use the "Undo" button it erases lines you already made! It is very annoying. How I stop this from happening is I copy the picture, (Ctrl c) And then press new, then press paste. (Ctrl v) It workes, so that way you don't have to deal with that! 

Patience

You cant expect to be a good artist in the first day. It takes time. Every great artist has been practicing for years! You have to take baby steps. Build up your skills over time. And over that time you will gain experience and get better and better. Set goals and you could really be something great! All you need to do is be patient. 

A bit more on practice

A quick sketch (red) with guidelines (green)

Yes, practice is pretty important. The question is, though, HOW do you practice? Unlike in a lot of different interests, there are many different ways to improve your art skills. Here are just a few:

1. Use guidelines! These really help to get the body shape, head shape, and proportions correct. The picture shown is an example sketch that I drew.
2. Buy how to draw books, or look at how to draw videos/pages on the internet. These will give you a bit of an idea of how other people draw. Personally, I own 4 how to draw books at the moment.
3. Copy objects from real life. Though you may have a set style that you like to do, you can never draw realistically enough, and when you do it definitely gives you a better understanding as to how things look, and this will come in handy for any style you're doing.
4. Try out many different styles of art. If you practice these enough, you may find one that you like a lot (possibly more than your current one!), and you'll also have a wider variety of abilities. Though many artists seem to hate whenever people copy their styles, I'm perfectly okay if you base your drawings off of my style, but I'd also prefer that you just take the style and not necessarily the actual drawing.
5. Draw a variety of things! Yet again, this will expand your knowledge of art. They don't even have to be that far off of what you're already doing. For instance, if you can draw girls, you may want to try drawing boys. Or, if you can draw PPG's, you might want to try chibis (the bodies are really similar, depending on the style of chibi)!
6. Find a style of art that you really like (probably one of yours), and then practice with that one often so that it looks better and better each time you do it.

Conclusion and information about adding onto this page

I hope that all of you found this helpful! I had a lot of fun making it! Continue drawing to your heart's content, and don't give up (what is this? A pep rally? :P)! If anyone can think of any more tips, please add them in! However, I'd prefer if you didn't edit or delete whatever I've already said (unless you find a grammar mistake). If you would like to add something in, please hit enter after the paragraph/bullet I've already written, or add another category. It might get a little confusing if a sentence was stuck into the paragraph I already wrote. Also, after these paragraphs/points/categories you've made (to give yourself credit) you might want to sign your name like this:

~Bo Bo Joe

After all, I'd hate taking credit for something I didn't do! If I can think of anything more to add to this, too, I will.