Cheer up m8, I don't hate you..... (well not yet, anyway ;D)
"A few pointers" is a bit vague .... are you stuck with something in particular? If you're a complete noob I strongly recommend you head over to the Editors Depot (link at the top of this page) and look in Tutorials - Getting Started - First Steps. Read snYpir's OFPEC Guide: Mission Editing and macguba's Guide to Mission Editing for Beginners (he wrote modestly). They'll set you off in the right direction. If you want to see what a finished mission looks like get the Tutorial Mission from the same place, also by yours truly. Play it first and then take it to bits in the mission editor.
Good luck. Come back and ask if you get stuck (but read the sticky at the top of this board first.)
Oh, and
W e l c o m e t o t h e f o r u m s !