I read an article about using the hypnogogic state to induce lucidity...I'll see if I can find it.

Personally, I'm not sure I'd even want to attempt it. If I'm going to have a scary night time experience, it's going to be a hypnogogic hallucination--I have never had a pleasant one that I remember. I always have visions of dark figures in my room, or of being enclosed in darkness, or hearing screams...god, it's awful. It's the reason I learned to daydream myself to sleep--if I'm in control of the visions leading up to falling asleep, I'm less likely to have the ones that scare me.