I've noticed that having a build in mind before creating the character is more crucial for this game than the following two Elder Scrolls games. My first character's build was "hmm, this could be useful, that could be useful" and now she's stuck in the swamps, surrounded by bad guys that look like mutated dinosaurs and no healing potions or spells. She's staying there. I had more luck with my second character, a Wood Elf born under the Mage sign for the extra magicka, and apothecary as one of her primary skills so that she can build a ton of potions for cash, and she created a minor healing spell at the Mage's Guild that is working out nicely.
As for the controls, you can hook up a controller, I would recommend the 360 one simply because Microsoft specifically designed it to work with a PC, but if that's not an option, remapping your keys is. I've gone and mapped almost everything to my cheap 4-button mouse, and it's helped out considerably.
Not gonna lie, that alone is making the game more fun, not dieing all the time. 
