I drew Tippy the Turtle and the pirate from an ad in TV Guide in the early 80s. I mailed it in and got a certificate from the company and an offer for 1 free class.
This was WAY before digital and social media; I did the lessons via correspondence. It was a lot of fun! My dad is an artist (painter of many mediums — oil, acrylic, watercolor, latex, tempera) and he paid for the rest of the series of classes.
Through this program — along with the Ed Emberley drawing guides — I learned a lot about composition, line quality, underdrawing, etc. I still use a lot of the things I learned and it was very beneficial.
I still draw today, most of it is single panel cartoons in the style of The Far Side.
I love the feel of graphite, ink, or charcoal on the paper, it seemingly connects me to each fiber as I cross it.
