Welcome to dA!
Read your journal; I'm no expert, either, but from what I've learned thus far...: Practice, practice, practice. Drawing from life (though time-consuming, frustrating, etc.), is the best teacher and gives the quickest results. Referencing photos is good, too, as is getting tips from drawing books. I used to prefer Christopher Hart's manga-mania series of drawing books, and I also like *
neondragon's drawing books.
Good luck to you!