What should I be looking at?
No work stands alone, just like no writing stands alone. Your work exists in relationship to other things. The better you understand this context, the better you will be able to explain why you have made specific decisions, whether in homage to or in reaction to other work that is out there. While twenty years ago, there were just a handful of magazines to pay attention to, now a well-rounded designer has an idea of what’s in those magazines and what’s online and being talked about in conferences (most of which are available on video online).