When I first started this profile, I was quite new to the whole deviantART-thing. I put up some submissions, and I think they sucked balls. I felt like I had potential, I knew I had, but some important things were missing. So I decided to check out some of the other artists in the community and I randomly found this guy . He was AMAZING! I was stunned, I was paralyzed! His skills were so complex, so advanced and so great in all ways. His ways of illustrating and filling out a blank Photoshop-document were just incredible. So, well, I sent him a humble note, describing my awe for his works and asking how the hell he could be so good and he was doing it and all that. A long letter where I called him  my "master", a lot. I was 16 at the time, I think. Anyways, to my surprise he actually answered my letter! I read it, and well, by the end of it, I was a new person. He filled me with inspiration and ambition. God, his advice was so.... good. So utterly good. I'm going to copy the note here. Normally I look upon such material as confidential, a conversation between to people, a dialogue if you will. But in this case, I feel you guys deserve it. You guys that feel you want to improve yourself in the ways of art. I know it improved me in SO many, many ways. I owe him literally everything for being the artist that I am today.

"Travis -
Let me say 1stly that we arent going to be able to have conversations if you call me your master, hehe.
Im an artist, just like you; whos trying to be better, just like you.
Call me brad.

Your only 16 years old.
I wasnt as good as you are at 16.
The first thing you must understand and accept about art is that you never stop learning, ever.

I know that feeling you speak of.
You look at other peoples work and despair and think youll never, ever be good enough, that it seems to come so easily for them and harder for you; that you dont have what it takes and never will.
You must learn to use that feeling.
Use it and focus it to an edge that no razor could match.

Draw from life.
Draw everyday for hours.
When others play, you draw.
When others go out with girls , you draw.
When others sleep, you draw.
When others goof off, you draw.

Learn to *see* what you have drawn, not what you want your drawing to be.
Then fix the mistakes.

Learn to take criticism, no matter how rotten it makes you feel, channel that feeling - show them they'll have nothing to criticize next time.

Let the obsession to be the best take control.
To not only be the best, but to bury the best and leave them crushed in your wake.

You get the idea, you also have to learn to turn that feeling off and relax, live. That mantra I just went through should be your mindset when you practice.

Look at it as using the dark-side of the force
  

Buahaha!

Seriously, it may sound goofy but you have to train yourself and practice, get into art school if you can and if you cant; train yourself.
I did, I got kicked out of high school and never went to college.

Use photo reference to get your skills up, learn to see how light behaves, watch light and what it does when it comes into contact with an object, ask yourself what makes something look real.

Practice, practice, practice.

If you have any questions just come by and ask me.
Just dont call me idol or master...ok?

Oh and between you and me? I dont care too much for anime myself"

Feel like you're reimbursed with your ambitions? Hope you do! I hope you read this and thought; "damn, this guy is so RIGHT! In every way!". Because he is. Don't let that feeling we were talking about get you down. That feeling that fucks you up, telling you you're never gonna achieve something as good as what you saw the other night on that pro profile. Use that feeling. Just use it. Turn it to something good! And that doesn't just concern art and skills. Do so in every situation in life.

I hope this gave you something. If not, then I'm sorry. Partially sorry for you. Hehe.
Let's give a toast for this GREAT artist! Pay him a visit on his profile, if you haven't already. He's such a great artist, you can't miss him.
Thank you for reading.
-Tobias

oh, and be sure to check out my facebook-page at: [link]