I'd like to share something with you guys that I think might make some of you feel better about yourselves. This might be a TL;DR, but I think it's worth reading.

I've had people ask me before at college when it was that I started learning to draw. When I tell them my mother was an artist, and she always pushed art on me, they roll their eyes and go pfft, "That's why you can draw. You started young."

The reason that most people who, when they start art young, actually grow up to become artists is this. When I drew as a kid, I didn't think "man, my art sure sucks, I should give up!" I drew because I ENJOYED it. It was FUN, and I LOVED making pictures that reflected pieces of my imagination. As I got older, with so much practice, my skill naturally improved with time and effort. And since I was getting older, my awareness of the world around me got sharper, but my skill was growing, so I never thought, "I suck." I always just did it because it was a passion of mine.

Because of all those years of hard work, when I got to be a teenager and started doing realism charcoals, I was good enough that I still had confidence, because I had practiced. And so I stuck with it.

The problem with starting art when you're an adult, is that you're AWARE of the fact that your beginning work sucks. Adults have less patience than children, and they have ulterior motives for doing things. So if you're an artist now, or you want to become an artist, stop drawing to make other people happy. Draw to make YOURSELF happy, and only then will your work really shine. Don't give up just because you're unhappy with your work. It just takes practice, like anything. I'm by no means at the bar that I want to be myself, but that's just motivation to stick with it. Anything worth having is worth fighting for!

It's easy to get discouraged. Remember that this is a website FOR artists. Just because there's a great many artists on here, doesn't mean you're not special. It doesn't make you "just another nobody." All the people who use this site are spread out across the whole world. When everyone's an artist on here, it's easy to feel small. But go out there in the real world, and you'll realize that when you tell people you're an artist, they'll "Oooh" and "Ahh!" because artists are more rare than you think.

And it's that way with anything. If you go work out at a gym, you're always going to compare your body to the bodies of people who are personal trainers and devote themselves to nothing but diet and exercise. Some people give up, because they compare themselves. Some people are motivated. But the key to success is to do things because you enjoy them, and it's good for you. And realize that even the people you idolize don't have perfect lives. We all struggle with insecurity. Life is too short for jealousy.

So pat yourself on the back. Your art rocks! Your writing rocks! Keep plugging on! Even if you don't get a lot of comments, or commissions, it's not about the popularity game, it's about doing something for yourself.

I love you all, you should love yourselves, too.