Thread: how should it be for a beginner?

So, after looking around at a few things on this site yesterday, I was very intrigued and decided to give it a shot that night. I was surprised how much my enthusiasm actually increased the lucidity of my dreams. In a few of them, which by now I can't remember all that clearly, I knew I was dreaming and tried certain things like flying etc. But it seemed as though the more I tried, the less realistic it felt and the less of a dream it really was, seeming more like thoughts instead of dreams. Also, the more I realized I was dreaming, the more awake I felt/acted, and things seemed fuzzier and less clear. Earlier in the night I had had a dream that although very realistic, it was non-lucid. This dream reminded me how usually, in my normal dreams, I feel that I have control of the dream, even if I don't consciously realize it. When this happens I usually come to a point where I have a plan or something is going on, but nothing really unexpected happens. That or I know that something's going to happen, but I wait for it to happen on its own. Even though I kind of feel my mind creating the dream, a lot of times it's not in my favor and the most exciting parts never happen, and I just end up waking up waiting for them. As I said before, the more I realize I have control of the dream, the more awake I become and less clear it seems.

Basically, what do I need to do to make the lucidity increase and the still have the clarity stay the same or possibly even increase? A cool thing about it, I thought, was that I felt just as rested or maybe even more so. Also, would making sure I remember my dreams help at all?

thanks, this is all very intriguing