Hi, Ms. K. You are in the right place! Thanks for posting!
I don't believe that all of the cookies posted here have guidelines or patterns that were followed per se - some people are just quite skilled at creating from within! Though I do know that, especially when starting out, many people follow our online tutorials (here: http://cookieconnection.juliau...hnique-tutorials-all) or the many other great sources of them across the web. Others also copy images they find on the web or elsewhere, though I always advise doing this only with the permission of the original artist from whom one is copying. (Copyright infringement is the possible issue if one does not do this.)
Another way to get started is to seek advice on this site by posting questions under the specific images you like, asking the cookie artist how the cookie was created - with any templates or tracings and with what techniques? This information could also give you a lot to go on.
Best of luck, and happy decorating!