To add on what gorsal said about line arts, I suggest using references for the characters you're spriting, mostly on the pokemon.
For example look at the tail on charizard, do you really think it's that thick on the end? I don't think so:
![[Image: Spr_b_5b_006.png]](http://archives.bulbagarden.net/media/upload/4/48/Spr_b_5b_006.png)
whether it's an official sprite or a piece of artwork, you can still look at it to get some sort of idea about what you're spriting (or drawing for that matter).
For example look at the tail on charizard, do you really think it's that thick on the end? I don't think so:
whether it's an official sprite or a piece of artwork, you can still look at it to get some sort of idea about what you're spriting (or drawing for that matter).