My preference is whatever makes a sweet sound instead of that thud when two pieces meet. You know, that warm, (never fuzzy) snap-happy sound. It's normally white pine - fallen, dead, consistent size ... tarp poles the bark is falling off of. Cedar is great in the rain but it also burns away so quick. Beaver sticks offer a steady flame for a good long time, I just don't like the odor they produce. They stink IMO but he only time I'm that picky is when steak or baking is involved.

Broken branches are fine if they are more convenient or over abundant although they do tend to leave ugly remnants and pop/spark more than split trunks plus they don't stack nearly as nice. ;) Come to think of it, a snap is good but punky logs have well seasoned branches.

Size wise, I'll saw 2, short ~3 inch diameter chunks for a base but almost never expect decent flame from anything more than a third that size unless I plan on sitting there the better part of a day.

For starters I just put three juicy pine cones on a handful of long/fat/stiff pine needles with a birch bark wick between that's long enough for my bic to catch. The wick is the only thing that really NEEDS to be somewhat dry ... have I mentioned being a little fire bug as a kid lately? <insert "tool time" series of three grunts here> Some carry matches and stuff in the food/cook/ditch pack, I do too but I'll usually find some dry bark and foil before I ever get down deep enough for the emergency stuff.

Knock on wood