Research:
That's what I'm working on right now - understanding comics and applying that to a story. This is one of the semester 7 projects and I am so glad I chose comics! I have hardly read too many comics compared to people who create comics but I was lucky enough find Scott McCloud's Ted Talk while I was looking up about comics in the first week of the project.
I also went through bookstore shelves that were packed with Marvel and DC comics. It would sound strange but I just couldn't handle reading them. From the time when I was young, the super hero comics were something I didn't like. I don't know what exactly it is about them but it is probably something around the lines of too much 'action to action' frames and rich dark colors. I thoroughly enjoy Calvin & Hobbes, Tintin and similar comics. I think I feel at home with the subtle color scheme and simplicity of the whole story as well as the 'look' of the story.
Besides Popular Super Hero comics there are many other Graphic Novels, such as, Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis, Craig Thompson's Blankets etc.