Been there....Let me help you out here.
First off, this is the modern age, so where you live doesn't matter, as long as you have an internet connection.
Second, while there are a number of people who are successful as novelists and comic writers, bear in mind that they are very different forms of storytelling, and that you will need to study the particulars of each form.
Your questions.
1. How does one commission a comic artist/illustrator? I'm assuming there's a difference between a set of comics and a stand-alone piece; but how big a difference?
Many different ways. Yes, there is a difference between an artist on an on-going project and a stand-alone piece. You also really need a script in hand before looking for an artist, the same way an artist needs a portfolio before shopping their art around.
This breaks down into Front-end, where you hire an artist, back-end where you collaborate with an artist in exchange for eventual profits, and mixed where you and the artist work out a deal based on partial payment up front and a percentage of the future revenue. I have done all three on both sides of the deal, and there is no way that is better than another.
2. How do -you- or people you've worked with price their work for long-term projects? Is there a system of royalties as there is with publishing companies? (Doesn't have to be actual pricing but the framework of it)
No, there is no system of royalties in the comic industry. It is almost always done as work-for-hire at the top of the field, and profit sharing becoming more prevalent as you move down the ladder until at the entry level back-end payment is pretty standard.
There needs to be a royalty system, but getting one set up is more than a single person can do.
3. Self-publish (such as a webcomic) or publisher - what have you done, what do you suggest, any comments about that?
Plan for how you want to do your comic, web or print (or both), but if you are going to print publish, worry about it later. Do the research now to find out what the proper ratios and pixel widths are, but worry about getting the project finished before you start in on the publishing, as once you start, it will take up all of your comic making time. I publish my comics on the web, but they are all set for print, and I already have the printer lined up.
4. What is the balance of the illustrator/writer relationship like? Can a writer be -too- specific or controlling over their vision? How much input/direction do you prefer as the artist?
This depends. A lot of comic artists on the web look down on writers, and feel that the writer is only a minor part of the comic and the labour, so this leads to strained relations. A lot of comic writers look down on artists, since they understand that their name on a comic sells more copies than an artist's name, so this leads to strained relations. I tend to stay away from both ends of that spectrum, and deal with writers and artists who understand that it is a collaborative medium, and that there is an even split in the labour in a proper relationship.
Yes, a writer can easily be too controlling. You have to remember that the best comics tend to be collaborations, which means that the artist is taking the script, and modifying it to tell the story better through visual means. This is more than just deciding what camera angle to use, this includes altering your panel count, altering your page layouts, eliminating dialogue that can be better conveyed through the art, so on and so forth.
Write in full script format, but be eager for your artist's input.
5. Who does the typesetting - the writer or the illustrator? If it is the illustrator, is it odd for the writer to want to do it for stylistic reasons? (I'm sure this sounds funny but bear with me please...lol)
It's not typesetting, it's lettering, and there are two ways of doing it, by hand or digitally. While you are more than welcome to do the lettering, and many artists will let you, I should point out that lettering, even digitally, is an art in and of itself. And most people do not do it well. Placing captions and balloons and picking fonts, font sizes, etc, are all choices that most people do not make well. It takes a lot of work, practice, and study to be able to properly make the page flow with the words added. A good artist has drawn a page to make the eye track around the page in exactly the order that the artist wants. Every panel is composed to lead the eye to the next panel. The letterer has to come in and add captions and balloons to keep this flowing properly, to know when to break dialogue up, how to make certain words and phrases emote stronger, and the like.
6. I've been preparing a sort of "story board" of my intro chapter of my comic, with written descriptions of the panels & dialogue as well. I have the first piece of the script written out, just needs to be typed. My intent is to show these to artists so they can see what kind of vibe I'm going for - is that odd, have I gone above what was necessary?
Not at all, I have done this myself, and it often helps an artist, but don't expect the finished product to look like what you drew out. They are going to change things, and they should as they are the ones with the visual storytelling experience. Let them do what they do, and you do what you do.
Eagle
(Hope that helps)
