I'm a new AG brewer too, and I started with an American pale ale followed by an American amber.
As I discover the pitfalls and challenges that awaited me, like hitting target OG, hops balance, yeast handling and attenuation issues, I find I'm eager to simplify my recipes, so that I can work through problems and become more confident in my process.
So, for my third AG I'm going back to a pale ale. It will have a low percentage of unfermentables: roughly 85% 2-row, 10% Munich malt and 5% Crystal 40. I'll mash at 152 F. (I went with higher mash temps before because a full mouthfeel sounded yummy, but I was left with attenuation problems I couldn't quite explain--was it the mash temp, the grain bill, or the yeast?)
I'll bitter with Magnum and let my single flavor and aroma hop, Columbus, shine through. I'm paying careful attention to hops scheduling, since my first two AG batches were imbalanced--one underhopped, the other overhopped. I'm using Hopularity, an iPhone app, to set my hop schedule.
I could use a clean, neutral ale yeast like Wyeast 1056, but I started with WY 1272, American Ale II, and I find that I'm learning a lot from watching that particular yeast and seeing what it does with different pitching rates, across generations, and at different temperatures.
Bottom line is that I'd keep it simple, but still complex enough that there is something for you to learn in each part of the process.
Have fun!