jad2t,
Make your fire on one side of the kettle and cook on the other. I tend to go about 60/40 lump to wood. Let the wood char and flame to die down some too before adding the meat.
Here is a thick cut pork loin chop from last weekend:
No need to soak wood or anything, I am actual using kiln dried wood floor scraps (hickory, white and red oak), untreated of course