Truespace is actually free. It has a small learning curve, but the interface is simple and creating an object is fast and easy. The program is powerful and underestimated in the 3d community.
As for your model, it looks like you used NURBS to create it. As of right now directX doesn't support NURBS. Though I've been reading up on some new graphics engines being developed that actually use NURBS models in real time without the slowdown(would drastically change the way we produce video games in the future).
The best way to model a low-poly object is to start off with a primitive; sphere, cube, plain, cylinder.
For example, here I've started a simple human character using a single cylinder primitive:
Here's the wire, as you can see it's basically a cylinder extruded about it's upper and lower faces, then the vertices of each loop of edges is adjusted to fit the form of a leg:
If you take the time to design your model, and break it down into its basic components, modeling is easy. Though honestly, a good knowledge of art is a plus.
Good luck in your endeavors.
