hello - I am new here

This is the first message I have posted. I am long since retired and all my interests are currently home based as my partner needs a lot of care and I myself have little energy at the moment. I got into bread making last year and quickly became hooked on sourdough. I set myself a target this year to improve my slashing technique. I have made some ghastly mistakes - dropped the loaf down the side of the oven, the dough was too near the edge of the oven shelf and rose over, I've had unwanted tears and enormous holes as well as flying crusts. I would just love some simple, suggestions that I can try out one at a time to see what works best for me. Thanks for any help.