I was researching around this idea more and found this quote from Sageous that got me thinking. He says: "In the end, and definitely in the context of LD'ing, you are your mind. To become lucid, you are not convincing your mind to do anything; you are convincing your self. Assuming that there is some other entity "in there" that can be convinced, coerced, or forced by will to allow you to be lucid is to take a step away from lucidity, not toward it -- becoming lucid is a decision you make, and not, ever, the result of some trick or act of willpower you play on a separate mind. Willpower, and its little brother, focus, is a powerful tool, and can certainly help a dreamer hold her attention on a goal of lucidity. But it cannot cause a lucid dream on its own, because lucidity is the presence of waking-life self-awareness and memory, and if they're not there, willpower or not, then you are not lucid."

I liked and agree with what he had to say here about there not being anything else "in there" that has any control over lucidity. But, it seems less "fun" to me that this is true. I WANT there to be something "other" in my dreams, like persistent dream characters. I don't mean this in a spiritual sense or anything, but in the sense that is seems less fun to always have a plot that only revolves around me as the only character.

I guess one of the problems I'm facing in trying to describe the this lack of integrity in my thinking is that I haven't ever bothered to really figure out "why" i desire persistent dream characters. What benefit is there to a dream guide, specifically? Why is it that since the beginning I have been fascinated with persistent dream characters and environments?

Is it hindering my lucidity, my self-awareness and memory, to try and set an expectation that there could be a dream guide that can help me achieve these things? For instance what if I could imagine a dream guide that would greet me every dream saying "self-awareness and memory are the keys to lucidity". Could that be a dream sign to increase and even spark my own lucidity?

I have confused myself enough while writing this so I can't imagine I am making much sense. Someone else please chime in now.