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God guys, some seriously unhelpful responses! If someone hasn't had any formal music training, they may be very talented but still clueless as to how to go about writing for orchestra etc.
To the OP - like some people have said, writing for orchestra takes years and years to master (if ever), but it's really pretty simple to get started if you have a good ear. As for writing scores, that'll probably take quite a bit longer if you've never done music theory.
If you look at something like Sibelius and panic, then get a good orchestral library and play around. They can be quite educational and intuitive themselves, as you get to learn very quickly how an orchestra works, the different frequency and dynamic ranges of the various sections, and the possible playing techniques. Once you're okay with all that, you really only have to worry about learning to translate all that onto a score, which you could probably learn in 3-4 years. So, if you have a good ear and can play keyboard pretty well, just throw yourself in at the deep end and see what happens.
If you just want to use an orchestra to reinforce your rock / pop work, then this is probably as far as you need to go. Professional songwriters tend to get arrangers to do this work for them anyhow. Even for TV / Games / Animation, you often find very talented people working who didn't have a formal music education.
I'm sure those of us with music degrees would agree that even though you gain a lot in technique, proficiency and the speed at which you work, there's still no substitute for raw talent. If you have it, then it is achievable to learn all the rest.
Feel free to PM me if you want any more advice on writing for orchestra.
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