There are a lot of people out there who think that drawing is some sort of talent you're either born with or you aren't. I don't think that's true one bit!

In the movie RATATOUILLE--which you should see because it's fantastic--one of the themes is "Anybody Can Cook." The same principle applies to drawing: anybody can do it!

And you know what the best part is? There's one easy-to-remember secret to drawing that will never lead you astray and set you on the path to becoming a master. Of course, if you've seen my artwork it is hardly masterful. Yet, I think this is because of laziness on my part. If I worked harder I could be a lot better.

Enough about me, are you ready for the secret? Here it is...I'm gonna show ya...

The secret to drawing is a simple three step process:

STEP 1 - Draw something.
STEP 2 - Look at what you drew.
STEP 3 - See the flaws, erase and/or redraw them. Start at step 2 again.

That's it. That's all there is to it.

Here's a more detailed breakdown for those inclined to actually read it.

In STEP ONE you get to draw something! Woo hoo! Drawing is fun! You can draw whatever you want. The trick is just to get SOMETHING on the paper. Without that first something you won't have anywhere to start the refining process. So draw something. It by no means has to be perfect. In fact, the less perfect it is the better! Why is that? Because the more you have to fix, the more you will learn. I'll explain below. Got something on your paper now? Good. Set your pencil down for a second and move to the next step.

STEP TWO is probably the most difficult step and will separate the lazy (ahem...ME) from the dedicated. In this step you stand back and look at your drawing with an EXTREMELY critical eye. The more flaws you see, the better. Look for every single thing in your drawing that isn't right. If you're using a reference (and I suggest you do), compare the reference to your drawing. What's missing? What's not supposed to be there? What's deformed? What's for lunch? The trick is to spot all the problem areas. If you can see what is wrong with your drawing, then all you have to do is the next step.

Finally STEP THREE is to simply redraw what isn't right. If you're still a beginner (and most of us are...myself included!) you will almost never get it right on the first try. You'll draw something, it will look kind of funky and you'll have to redraw it so it looks better. A very important note on redrawing: make sure you use references so that you can LEARN how to draw whatever it is you don't know how to draw. For example, if you draw a character and the hand just doesn't look right, well then find some images of hands and practice drawing them. Then once you've learned how to draw hands you can fix the hand on the character you drew. Sure this is a tedious process and will undoubtedly make your first few artworks take an eternity to complete, but you will be teaching yourself how to draw. Therefore, the next time you go to draw something--like a hand--you'll be better-trained and might even be able to get it right on the first try!

So, if you follow that simple three step process and DO NOT get down on yourself (we ALL had to make A TON of crappy drawings before we could make good ones), then you'll be a master in no time!