Learn Cartooning from Online Lessons

You've always wanted to try your hand at cartooning. You think that you might have a knack for it. And you also think that it's something that you'd really enjoy learning a little bit more about. But you aren't particularly fond of the idea of going to art school, or school at all for that matter. And you don't seem to be able to teach yourself cartooning from a book from the library. So how do you go about learning cartooning while avoiding these two most common methods of study? The answer these days is to go online.

You can learn cartooning online from classes that are offered over the Internet. The most serious of these classes will cost you some money but there are a few free cartooning courses available online. You can also use the resources of the Internet to find a great cartooning teacher who might be willing to give you some basic instruction at low or no cost. And if those options fail for you, you can always join an online art community where you can develop your skills with the assistance of others who use the forums to offer advice on the site.

The first place that you'll want to try learning cartooning online is from the classes that are available there. There are plenty of cartooning courses that you can pay for but if you are trying to avoid the cost, you'll have to dig a little deeper. One way is to read cartooning blogs and to keep an eye out for course offering announcements. For example, this web site recently made an announcement that it would be starting cartooning classes. You should also stay tuned in to the Internet for online cartooning competition announcements. Here is an example of one competition which offered free online cartooning classes as the prize. You can also find some really basic cartooning lessons archived online; here is an example.

If what you find online isn't really suiting your needs, you might need to start looking around for a good teacher instead of an available class. One of the best ways to do this is to head to Craig's List. You can advertise in the "artists" sections in the Craig's List community that you are seeking an online cartooning teacher. Some cartoonists who are trying to develop a teaching resume may be willing to help you out at no cost in exchange for a reference. You could also offer some online talent of your own in exchange for cartooning lessons through the "barter" section. Other than Craig's List, your best bet is probably to search out cartoonists who have blogs online and email them, asking about their willingness to provide you with lessons for a reference or some sort of barter service.

Finally, you can always turn to an art community for assistance in learning cartooning. Go to your favorite place to join groups (Yahoo Groups, MySpace, Facebook or elsewhere) and seek out cartooning groups that appear active. If you are willing to spend the time to engage people in interesting conversations on the forums of these groups, you can get a significant amount of information from them about how to get started in cartooning. And the best part is that since you're part of a cartooning community, you'll get feedback on your progress.