Where to start?

#1 Where to start? Find your niche. What do you enjoy doing? What are your strong a weak points? I could say start at programming, but you could turn out to be a poor programmer but a very good modeler, you know? There are a lot of things that need to go into a game. You can't really just "make a game," unless you start out by using one of those gamemaker packages (can't think of their names off the top of my head). So to start off, explore the different areas of the game making process (programming, art, modeling, sound, etc.) and find one you like the best, one you could spend hours and hours doing without the desire to jump off a bridge. But most importantly, find one that you're really good at. Check out sites like gamedev.net and flipcode.com. Just keep a good understanding that it takes a lot to make a game, and even more to make a good one. It's not something you can really just "jump" into...it takes talent and dedication.

#2 If you've never programmed before, you might want to learn how if you want to make a game on your own... well to be serious...

If you can't program you're not going to make a game on your own with Torque.

You're best off polishing up your skills and joining a team that has programmers already in it. Good luck to you.