Hi there CW!
I'm also new to this, but anatomy wise I might have an idea or two. In my books you have 2 choices:
a) go for realistic - this takes lots of research and practice - you can't draw a person / animal / thing without knowing how it is put together in the first place. So for people, look at pictures of skeletons, muscles and positions (those old fashioned art sketch books are great for this)
b) If you suck at this, there's always the next option. Get a reference that will help you with proportions and then break the figure down into its geometrical shapes.
Once you have those, you can add the curves - I always tell the kids in my art classes that when they learn to draw something they find very difficult they should turn it upside down... yes upside down - that way they draw only what they see and not what they think they saw.
Humanoid figures are about the bone structure and how the muscles are attached to it - then you have to get the positioning of the limbs right.
Option C:
When you finally mastered the anatomy part you can have loads of fun! Distorting parts like a larger head or doing some foreshortening etc...
I tend to ramble - teacher's habit -
Hope this helps 
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