What advice would you give me about firearm ownership?

I learned to shoot in college from some of my more rurally reared friends, and fell in love. With the Remington 870 Express Magnum 12 gauge, specifically. I’m interested in skeet shooting, not hunting. I live in New Jersey and have never taken a firearm safety class. My (unofficial) safety training consists of being told to keep very careful track of whether my gun’s loaded or not, and to point up at God or down at the devil if I’m not taking a shot.

I want to own a shotgun. So I need to know what I should do to prepare myself for this.

I’ve been looking at places to take safety classes, but I’m having trouble finding a place that offers something for shotguns, and not just rifles and handguns. Or should I just try out a handgun? I hear they’re quite fun.

Any advice or personal experiences you could offer would be helpful. Thanks, jellies!