Apart from just following a wiring diagram, I would like to learn not only the how but understand the why of the wiring of preamps and pickups etc - is there a good guide, video or book where I can learn about it?
Seymour Duncan has a series of blog posts : Guitar Wiring Diploma Course - Guitar Pickups, Bass Pickups, Pedals Other than that, read lots of diagrams, increase in complexity over time, think in terms of chained and sequential modules as much as possible, and have fun
Fralin has (or, had) a blog with a lot of wiring articles on it as well. And if you want to get in to YouTube, Stewmac makes a lot of great videos for repair and modification techniques. Their products tend to have good instructions as well, which are all on their website. Generally, when it comes to active preamps, the wiring is basically a matter of following the manufacturer's directions. There's not really much in the way of general best practice or standards, at least as compared to wiring passive instruments. The best way to learn about installing active EQs is probably to just look at manufacturer instructions.
Do you mean building your own preamp or just installing a pre-built unit into an instrument? If you want to understand and build a preamp, here's an easy introduction made by TB'er @RobbieK- in fact he has a number of great videos that can teach you some valuable basics via demonstrations of mods, repairs and builds he has done filmed and explained in real-time. For more of the theory and projects another good intro would be the old book Electronic Projects for Musicians, A Comprehensive Guide by Craig Anderton: Electronic Projects for Musicians, A Comprehensive Guide | Amplified Parts