Get used to killing your engine and seeing how your ship behaves using the afterburner only.
When you get better, you can turn round and shoot at your NPC enemies while moving backwards, away from them.
As they have to afterburn to keep up with you, they will use up their afterburn energy and will fall behind.
And when you're really good you'll realise that you have to turn the way you want to go before you hit the afterburner!
Running effectively pays when you want to carry on as a "peaceful" trader - when you can hit them hard and run at the same time, you've got it nailed.
Then when you're good enough, you can try to take on live players too! lol
Roleplay: - the art of self-deceipt!