Although I'm sure that there are 'naturals' out there, most folks need hours and hours and hours (and months) of practice to achieve consistent Free Motion Quilting (FMQ). It is normally advised to work on small practice pieces before attempting quilting a quilt. So having said this, you should consider yourself ahead of the curve. If you do a search on this board for FMQ and Free Motion Quilting, you will find lots of info. The one thing that you will quickly see is although there are lots of suggestions, it's really a matter of trial and error. Every machine and quilter are different and you need to find what works for you, and you will need lots of practice.
I would have 2 suggestions: first, if there's a place you can take a FMQ class near you, I would advise it. This is one technique that really benefits from hands on instruction.
And second, because you seem to be catching your needle in the fabric, i would see if there is a hopping foot available for your machine. This foot presses the fabric down when the stitch is made then hops up so you can move the fabric. Because there is pressure on the sandwich, the needle has a better chance to clear the fabric before the next step.