This article was written by our Everly Mag Intern, Chloe.  Get to know Chloe and our other interns here!

Maybe you’ve been wanting to learn how to draw for a while, or maybe you just want to pick up a new hobby this summer. Either way, drawing is a great creative outlet to get into. Being able to translate what’s in your head onto paper is super satisfying. The best part is you don’t have to be good at it to have fun doing it. However, if your goal is to be a better artist, follow these tips!

Draw as often as you can

People say practice makes perfect about a lot of things. With drawing, that’s especially true. Nobody gets good at drawing without training their brain to draw. It’s important that you keep it up, drawing every day if you can. You can practice wherever you can get your hands on a pen and some paper.  Fill as many sketchbooks as you can and don’t get disgruntled when the first few are “bad.” In a few months, think of how amazing it will be to look back at your first few drawings and compare them to where you are now!

Love what you draw, draw what you love

“Bad” drawings are good drawing. I know this sounds backwards, but “bad” drawings are good simply because you took the time to draw. You should stand by your work because that piece of art is the culmination of your passion, practice, and determination. A good way to stay motivated is to draw what you love, especially with some friends. Once you present your friend with a hand drawn picture of their favorite celeb, they’ll be so excited that you’ll get excited about what you’re drawing!

Collect inspiration

Need ideas for what to draw? Collect things that inspire you! You can do this physically, like with a shoebox of mementos, a desk full of knick knacks, or a wall full of pictures and art. If you’re not the kind of person who likes to keep a lot of stuff around, make a digital inspiration board instead! Pinterest is perfect for this.

Experiment

Always push yourself. If you don’t like how your art looks after practicing and practicing, it may be time to take a step back and look at what you’re doing. Maybe you need to try a new style. If you’re trying for photorealistic, try abstract. Maybe you need to start trying to work in a new medium. You can find cheap versions of expensive professional mediums at any craft store. Using these will help you save money if it turns out you don’t like the medium and not feel bad wasting expensive supplies.

Another way to push yourself is to educate yourself. If you’re drawing people, you might want to brush up on your anatomy. Find free figure drawing sessions in your area or just look up references online.Try to copy for yourself what your favorite artists do. As long as you don’t pass off a copy of their work as your own, it can be a great learning experience. Lastly, don’t forget to check out all of the amazing free tutorials that Youtube has to offer.

Do not compare your work to other people’s work.

Looking at the work of your favorite artists online should inspire you! Not demoralize you. People you see drawing online that have amazing skills, perhaps at a younger age than you, have just put more practice into drawing that you have. Besides, it’s good that your art doesn’t look like theirs. Otherwise, everyone would have the same art style and the art world would be boring. Cartoons and still-lifes can both be beautiful, but they’re beautiful in different ways.

Deep down, everyone is an artist. Every child loves putting finger paints to paper. When we get older, self-doubt makes us stop drawing. All of a sudden, everyone is saying that they can only draw stick figures. Well, let’s stop the cycle! Get yourself a pencil and some paper and don’t doubt yourself!

Do you like to draw?  What are your favorite subjects?  Let us know in the comments!

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Featured Image Credit: Daria Tumanova via Unsplash