I also get that blenders and such won't produce their own strokes. I use thsi program for fun and contrbuting to my YouTube channel. It's a fantastic program for me. Any assistance you can provide will be greatly appreciated!
Try a variety of brushes from different brush categories...if something doesn't work, go to the Painter help and search for that brush. Help will explain the intricacies of each brush type and will get you started on how to make brushes work.
Always verify you have a color much different than background. If on a layer, try painting on canvas, and vice versa.
"reset" any brush that acts odd...it may have a bad setting by accident
If brush does not paint on a blank area, try painting on paint already there.
For a specific brush problem, return here with specific on what you did that does not work.
I will do that, thank you!
Also, on layers pane:l check the buttons for 'preserve transparency' and 'pick up underlying color'....on/off make a difference and confusing if you are not aware if they are "on" or "off"