The biggest thing is using dry wood and never throttling your exhaust. I have seen more rookies believe the key to controlling their fire for an extended burn is to try and damper both sides of the air on the inlet and exhaust. Never choke the exhaust, the smoke will stick around in the smoke chamber too long, build up unwanted creosote in your box, and impart that too strong flavor that you are referring to. The only time you should be closing the exhaust is when your all done and you want to keep the rain out. Experiment with different woods, make sure they are well seasoned and after a couple tries you'll figure out how to keep your smoke clean, almost transparent. I make pizzas, breads, and rolls in mine and they can pick up a strong flavor real easy if you don't have it dialed in.
In short, it's fun! So start a fire, put some sort of meat matter in the box, open a beverage of choice and enjoy!