Hey there, Sandra Molina here. I'm a Spaniard working professionally as a colorist for American editorials such as DC Comics (Batman and Robin Eternal, Supergirl), Dark Horse (Tarzan on the planet of the Apes), Blizzard (Nova: the Keep) among many, many others. I've also worked in videogame illustration, and I've had the chance to work on a couple of scripts (and hey! webcomics!)
I'd always wanted to become an artist. I'd always sucked at it (I kept failing art all throughout my school life). Buuuuut I wanted to be an artist, because, that was the one thing I liked doing, even though I had the best grades in my school in everything else. I just wanted to work in "art" as a concept. I thought animation may be my thing, but there were no animation colleges around at the time, and by the end of 12th grade, I was EXHAUSTED of studying under the watch of my incredibly strict parents, being forced to follow a path I didn't want.
So I decided NOT to go to college, as thankfully, I was aware of one thing: fine arts degree are worth nothing. At all. So I just began contacting artists asking for B&W pictures to begin practising, as I knew lots and lots of comic authors and I was sure that I could make a portfolio and get and agent to get a job. I began working when I was 17 in some random Spanish editorial where I wasn't paid a dime. I arrived to the American market in Dynamite's Game of Thrones when I was 18. I began working in DC last year, when I was 19. I'm 20 now (21 in exactly a week, yay!).
So, in my experience, the two things you need to make it in the art world are:
1) contacts. 2) Skill.
You can make the first attending cons, talking to all sorts of artists in the sector you want to get into and making lots, lots of friends. Networking, ho!
And the second comes from practice. Nobody is born being the very best like no one ever was. And if they are, and they don't practise, they'll be quickly surpassed. Show you have the will to practise and improve, and people will be all over you.
And last but not least, and this is my own advice: be flexible. The important part is your goal; the path will take you from one place to another. I'd always wanted to work in videogames, and thanks to my job, I just recently worked in Blizzard, and I got to meet lots of people with whom I'd work on videogames later on! You never know where the path will take you, so enjoy the ride.
Hope that helped some of you!