Great article! I love the insight into your formatting. I'm amazed when artists point out the grid rules they've been following all along that I've not noticed. However I think that's the sign of a good layout. When it serves the story invisibly, that's something to be commended.
I can't remember who said it, but I recall an artist remarking that with comics, the more you learn, the slower you work. Rather than speeding up production, learning more about the form leads to every page becoming a new puzzle of layouts, pacing and design. Things a novice may not even consider become painstaking endeavors. I think only the rarest artists, like Eisner or Kirby, either push through that wall or have such a natural aptitude that it looks effortless.