For a first try, it is indeed a good piece! Still, it needs some fixes like the shell angle, as it seems it's in a different angle from the snail itself.
You don't need to apologize for it not being the most awesome piece in the world. Noone can be a master with the first try. And this piece is far away from being crap. Maybe a bit overdithered and some of the lines aren't very smooth. Also you could try to apply a more aggressive shading (darker shadows, lighter highlights) in your next piece. 3/6. (hehe, i should follow my own advice more often to improve...)
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