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I'm not very good at WFB or 40k, so I need an army that's forgiving of mistakes.  I tend to be a bit tentative in my plans, so I guess I'd say I play defensively. 

I like something about each army and I dislike something about each army.  I tried to go with the ones I liked the look of best, but almost all of them appeal to me visually.

Which army do you think would be best for the novice general?

Who is more forgiving of mistakes? 

Right now, all armies are on the table.  I haven't ruled out anyone but Khemri (I don't like the Egyptian theme).

Any advice would be appreciated.

Well, I certainly wouldn't reccomend Khemri anyhow for what you're asking.

Probably Dwarfs, Lizardmen, Emipre.  If you want to go defensive primarily, Dwarfs and Empire are likely your best bet, or possibly Dark Elves with heavy shooting and magic, but you might not make any friends that way.

Dwarfs excell at defense, but if you think you're going to want to branch out into offense at some point, go with Empire.  They are simply the most versitile army in the game.

I like Empire a lot.  It is effective, looks good, and can be configured in many different ways using lots of relatively inexpensive plastic figures.

However, part of the answer depends on your own personality.  Are you a beserk attacker, an out maneuverer, a stolid defender, a tricky counter-attacker, or just warped and twisted sneaky?  You need an army that matches your personality for a first army.

If fierce attack is your thing, Dwarves and Wood Elves are not the answer.

If dogged defense is your thing, forget Elves or Undead.

Orks and Goblins and Lizardmen are nearly as flexible as Empire, but completely different.

I run Vampire Counts and Empire and may add Khemri, Dark Elves, or even Orge Kingdoms for a joke.

I think the most forgiving armies for beginners are Chaos (mortal), Brettonnians, and Dwarfs. These armies respond well to fairly simple tactics. For Chaos & Brettonnians, charge across the table and break the enemy in close combat; for dwarfs, set up a tight defense and let the enemy break themselves on you. You should be able to win a few games while you learn the basic rules.

Other armies are not as 'easy'. They have special circumstances that, while they lend character to the army, do not translate well to other armies. For example, both Ogre Kingdoms & Undead have a large number of fear-causing troops, but OK rely on small units doing lots of attacks, while undead tend to rely on outnumbering & summoning new units; but neither of those help with an army (like Empire or Orcs & Goblins) that has few fear-causers. I love my Beasts of Chaos army, but I wouldn't want to start a new player off with them.

And new players should, I think, avoid elves of any kind. Elven armies tend to be expensive and weak, and require a great deal of finesse to use effectively. They have a learning-curve that is dam' near vertical.