WoW newbie looking for advice

[TriggerHappy]

My Warlock is now level 9. Woot!:)

Which leads me to another few questions. I don't seem to be able do anything to my attributes/stats. They raise on their own every level, so I end up with things I really don't need as a caster (strength mainly) getting raised anyway. Is there actually some way to manually control them?

Do you get anything out of PvP combat? I've been challenged a few times now to a duel, but didn't really want to get into them for thinking them to be a waste of time (for now). Do I get gold, experience, anything if I win?

My character constantly complains about being out of range of spells. Why won't she take two steps to get into range? I seem to remember vaguely from years and years ago in the stress test before launch (last time I tried WoW) that my mage character would close in on his own into spell range. After all, my little Fiend friend does it when I tell him to go shoot a Firebolt, why is my main character then blessed with the intellectual capacity of a gnat?

Oh sorry, one more question. When in god's name am I getting out of that forest? It seems endless and I'm yearning for a change of scenery.

Thanks again for any advice.