I'll give it a go.... I like to hold my rod tip about chest high while my spoon is working downsteam, if you doing it right the line will have a "bow" or bit of slack dropping from the tip to water.... & slack line & rod tip SHOULD be pumping or "pluse".
Thump, thump, thump is what your looking for. You need to place yourself in the right spot streamside as the spoon is only going to work correctly across & downstream from you. Your going to want to get it to pass thru the holding water your looking @ downstream... that will = a fish, in a perfect world.

Hard-core spooners love reels with a direct-drive switch, if you have one you know how they work. For you others keep the reel in free spool with your thumb fast to the spool. This will allow you to FEED line to the spoon as it works downstream, you can feel when the spoon WANTS to go. Let it, a bit at a time. This will kill the LIFT that your going to want to stay away from, as it will pull your spoon up & away from the strike zone. When you get bit, hang on, clamp down on that spool & fight it out, sooner of later you will need to click over the reel handle to fire-up your drag.

Clear as mud??

For you new spooners do yourself a big favor & pick up 1 Gibbs Ironhead spoon, its a big oval spoon that weighs in @ 1/2 oz. even though the package sez 3/4 oz. Fish it thru a run with water moving @ a brisk walking speed & about 4-6' of depth.

That spoon WILL tell you if your doing it right, right now. Huge thumps...

C/22