Hi there! I think you did a nice job with your proportions and your shadow shapes. You might try creating a value scale with your five values first and then trying to match those five values to your value scale. Instead of a crosshatch, try to create the value you want with just filling the shapes in with your pencil.  With the value scale in front of you (and right next to your drawing), it will be easier to see the contrast between values. In your drawing, your mid-tones are very close to the shadow tone, so the light parts and the shadow parts get a bit muddled. Also, maybe try to avoid outlining your edges so darkly. You did a great job with maintaining the sharp edges, though. Maybe just make sure the edge matches the value of the entire shape. 😊 I’ve drawn this pear 8 times so far, and still haven’t been satisfied, haha With respect to pencil sharpeners, I’ve tried a zillion of them and still haven’t found one I like. I use the ones that Stan hates - the ones that come free with every pencil set. They chew up my pencils, so he’s right about that, but they work ok for me in terms of getting my pencil to a sharp point. I have that black wing one that he likes - it’s expensive! (And not the only expensive one that I’ve tried) It worked great for about a month until a piece of graphite got caught in the blade. Even when I got the piece out, the thing won’t sharpen anymore. Rather than buy yet another expensive one, I just make the cheap ones work for me, and I don’t think it’s a huge deal. At some point, when I really know what I’m doing, I’ll learn how to do it with a blade. But right now, I can’t afford to ruin my pencils.