I know that this thread is a month old,but I could help wanting to put my two cents worth in. Is there a subject that you want to build? If you haven't started already - here are a few suggestions that might help you find your direction.
First,find out where you are modeling-wise by asking yourself a few questions.
What tools do you have?
Does this project require any specials tools to complete it?
How well do you know your subject?
Do you have reference photos of the subject?
What details does the subject you're studying have?
Is it complicated,with all kinds of surfaces that require a lot of detail and attention?
Are there any books on this subject?
Do you have a budget that will allow you to build in a certain scale of the subject that you might be interested in?
Are there any special skills you have that might be useful to help make this project easier?
Does this project require,or have a complicated paint scheme?
Asking questions is the first step in finding out more about what result you desire in your finished project. I know that there are a lot of people out there who are willing to help,but they can't always answer all your questions as effectively as you can.
When I started my project (four foot X-wing),there was almost nothing known about it,and there still is very little known about it now. I searched the internet for reference photos,and information on the history of my subject. I used various websites,and forums to learn all I could about it. I knew what my skills were,and what tools I have to build it with.
The modelers who originally built it(Mike Fulmar & Ira Keeler)made no known documentation of it,so I had to go about this like an archaeologist. I poured over photos of this for hours each week for the last year and I'm still finding out more information each day,but only a little at a time. This is a highly involved and difficult project,but it's not impossible. If there are models that were kitbashed for the model,or subject you want to build - you can identify and build this around them. This will help in extrapolating the size of the rest of the model from those kit parts. This is what I did to arrive at the scale of the model I'm building. This will be almost 100% scratch built,as most of the parts on the model I'm building are no longer made,or available to the public.
The more you know about your subject,the easier it will be to get the information you need to make it as accurate as possible. If you want to just start out making lenticular shapes to make proportioning easier - try the pepakura method first. This involves very little work,and it will also help you develop your skills at joining seams,and following unorthodox construction methods. This is a paper model with numbers on it to join surfaces together(with the same number on joining parts). As you progress,you'll see how this works and you'll have more confidence in making more complicated designs.
Then,you can try kitbashing other models of your own design. This will help you understand all that is involved in scratch building. This is taking a plan of the original model,or subject and making it in a certain scale from raw parts. Learning how to use simple tools to make this is an art that only you can teach yourself. I use Xacto knives,razor blades,rulers,yardsticks,a Moto-tool,and its' assorted accessories as well as,sandpaper of assorted grit to make what I've made in the past.
If there is a model of the subject that you want to build - by all means,buy it! Copy all the parts in a slightly bigger scale with polystyrene(styrene for short)sheet and shapes. This will help you a long way from simple model building. This helps to build your skill level and it will help you understand model construction a lot better than building an out of the box(OOB)kit can. After you're done,you'll have something to be proud of and you can say you made it from raw materials - something that's not possible with manufactured model kits.