quote:

To be like me, you'd have to be 50% an incurable perfectionist, 25% willing to accept you're never going to be perfect, and 25% unable to stop staring at pretty things.

I'm joking but seriously. For me, a few hours every day are devoted to examining things that I think are inspiring, including art from AQW, ED, DF, AQ, MQ, Tumblr, deviantART, music videos, cartoons, etc. Anything, even if it's work from fellow artsy folks who are still learning [like other forumites here, hinthints to afb, Flamehead, Heartdragon, Ligerbeard, and more ; ) ]. This is most definitely one of the biggest points that should also be one of the most obvious, but I don't think everyone understands it. I do not mean you should glance over hundreds of pictures, taking less than 7 seconds to appreciate them—I mean you should LOOK at them. Figure out why you like certain pieces. What makes the shapes interesting? Is there a particular style of lineart? Do the colors fascinate you? How's the lighting? Is the picture dynamic, harsh, bright, or soft? Is there a theme? Pay attention to details. Take what you like, and engrave it into your memory. Take what you don't like, and think of changes that could be done to make it better. Remember the structures you see, the techniques you come across, and the concepts other people imagine that you never thought of before. Create a mental library. Using references doesn't hurt either, because your mental library won't necessarily have the exact form of a bird's wing or the muscular system of a human memorized.

Beyond the above rant, you just need to practice and tweak as required. And if someone doesn't like your work, try to understand why rather than immediately calling them a hater unless they're a blatant troll. They might be a helpful critic despite how rude they initially come across as.

Wow, I really rambled. I'm so sorry. Hopefully it's a little helpful?