im about 4 months ahead of you. i built a chandler tube drive clone and just started an ibenez tube screamer clone.(good site for guitar effects)
http://www.generalguitargadgets.com/
not cause i really need them,just to get my feet wet. i dont think any one here has read this one but it really is good. electronics for dummies. read it, then refer to it . you'll never remember it all. i found myself going back to it again and again. get to your local library and read, read and read some more. get some soldering practice making cables.whatever type and or sizes you can use. oh yea .ive also gone garbage picking. tv, radios, vcr,etc. open them up.look see what components you recognize,find out what the ones you dont are. see if you can identify what part, power supply,amp,tone cotrols, etc,of the circuit you are looking at.(LEARN ABOUT PROPER SAFETY BEFOR YOU DO THIS) ive looked at, read, and took apart a lot of things i didn't have a clue about. i find myself understanding more and more. which usually just leads to more questions. i'm hooked
