Two massive hand full's of these twigs are good to have by your side when a novice is starting a fire. The pencil sticks should be a couple of inches longer than the matchsticks. Start the teepee process, but don t get carried away. One every 1 - 2 inches around the teepee is good. The fire must have air to feed the flame.
Most colleges have a fire fighting class of some level.
They teach that because fire needs air to live it is a living being. Don t smother the beast before you bring it to life. Now, collect lumber the diameter of broomsticks. The flame should spread throughout the tinder ball creating a super heated mass, which ignites the matchstick twigs and so on. Turn your head sideways get close to ground level and blow right into the burning embers in the tinder ball.