You’re not too old to start!

[eyewhiskers]

I just saw someone on here say that they were too old to start...and they said they were 17!

Lord have mercy, if 17 is too old then I guess I better just put one foot in the grave. I’m 28.

Please don’t give up hope so easily guys! Everything takes time. And even 50 isn’t too old to start if you’re dedicated to making it happen. Keep those chins up!

[CarltonIsaac]

[jcmraz]

I mean, can I give up and still stubbornly continue doing it anyway? lol cuz that's where I feel like I'm at. I'm 33 I've been doing comics for most of my life. 17 or 18 years. I've entirely given up hope that I'll ever be able to succeed in any fashion with comics but I keep drawing like a hopeless addict lol

[eyewhiskers]

I think as long as what you’re doing brings you joy, then you should keep doing it.

If you are disappointed in your work, then you need to take a hard look at what your producing and figure out why you aren’t satisfied. Is it your writing? Your art? You can take steps to improve both. You can’t get worse at something you do everyday.

And I draw everyday. Every single day. And I’m still not where I want to be. But I can see the daily improvements and it really brings me joy.

[DasIstWunderblyat]

This youth-glorifying culture needs to end IMO. It puts unnecessary strain to already stressed young people. People think that you they better rope themselves and will have more worth as their decomposing body become fertilizer, just because they don't have a stable job at 25 or a bachelor degree at 21(or anything people measure as success). The internet and social media glamorization of ideal lifestyle and glorification of the "grit" of young "entrepreneurs" who leech off their 1% mommy and daddy's money as "totes realistic and achievable" goal does not help.

Also I start pretty young but I still draw like shit. It is more how about you make your time spent studying effective, and how much hard work you put into it. I have seen "older" people improves in astronomical paces.

[JustLiz-o]

I'm 34 and still stumble through life like an idiot. Just get up after every fall and you'll be fine
And it's not like you can't improve anymore just because you've reached a certain age. Some things (like writing) will even be easier thanks to your experience.

[eyewhiskers]

Exactly! I second this 100%

It seems like you many younger people today think if they haven’t “made it” by their twenties then they are a failure and should just give up. It’s so ridiculous! It makes me feel like a grandma.

Social media is a bad influence on this idea and like you said, they often overlook how these young successes or entrepreneurs had a lot of help from rich parents.

Stop comparing yourself to others just to put yourself down. It takes a lot of work. Do what makes you happy.

[a.g.meade]

This is a great message - thanks for sharing! Heck, a lot of artists and writers are late bloomers. I didn't start drawing until I was 30, so if 17 is too old, then I'm a dinosaur

But seriously, there's definitely too much pressure on teens and early 20's people to "succeed", as though there's a single definition for that.

[eyewhiskers]

Right! It’s so frustrating to see young people give up so early. You have so much time to do things! Just enjoy it.

[doublemelon]

biss im in my prime as long as i can draw a line.

[JustLiz-o]

And once the hand gets shaky, there is still the stabiliser option

[doublemelon]

Stabiliser is a godsend, I never not use that lol

[jensrichard77]

42 years old and I started 3 years ago.

I must admit one thing. I’m not too old to start, but I might be too old to let my 10 years Magnum Opus project fail and restart a new one.

[thecrystalrook]

haha, too old my ass! I'm 32 now and I started almost two years ago.

[crowstories]

That is extremely silly. Start whenever. Find what you love. Don't waste your time wishing for the success of other people -- that way madness lies.

[DualDragons]

Seconding (or thirding? Fourthing? Idk) @diamondpowder, I think this youth-glorifying trend puts a lot of pressure on people to start as soon as possible. Not just in art, but for life in general. Makes me wonder why people glorify young talents so much. Is it because companies can exploit them? Because they don't have as many years in experience maybe? Idk

[BrambleberrySquirrel]

I didn't start seriously creating things until I turned 30. Now about a year later I'm 40+ episodes into a webcomic, writing a visual novel and just taught myself how to make a fully animated vtuber with face capture over the weekend. Life is longer than you think, don't waste it by limiting yourself. You can learn how to do just about anything with enough time and willpower. If you feel a creative spark pushing you to try things and experiment go for it, because you're way more likely to regret the things you didn't do than the things you tried and failed at.

[rajillustration]

Fun fact: Alphonse Mucha was in his 30's when he really started his career in illustration. Before that he was just in school and surviving and basically unknown painting murals on his rich patron's house. So if Alphonse Mucha, who is the best illustrator ever, was in his 30's when he finally broke out (during a period when illustration was king and highly sought after), I think it's OK if anyone else takes a bit longer.

[thetalentedmrwulf]

I agree and would be willing to bet ease of manipulation is why large businesses and corporations love to glorify young artists. The rest I think comes from a lot of weird cross-cultural stuff that exists where the nebulous concept of "talent" is worshipped far and above persistence. People want "prodigies" to exist both as legends and as excuses for not pursuing their own dreams. Someone once appraoched the violinist Isaac Stern after a concert and said "Oh, I'd give my life to play like you." "I did," was Stern's answer.

From experience, being worshipped for talent is a fantastic way to not develop the emotional and mental discipline to cope with being part of a wider world of skilled people, and how to react when things start being hard for you.

-signed Elder Millennial That Thought He Peaked In High School

[Puck]

I decided to restart learning in the night of my 40th birthday, I drew every day since then, took 10 courses and read countless books,
I´m training every day like a maniac. First 5 years were tough, it´s 6 years now and it´s start to get good, I need another 4 maybe to
be where I want to be. Daily training is important, the right courses, don´t skip perspective, learn to draw shapes in perspective first
and take it from there and thank me later