first-time poster but not a first-time dreamer

so for many years, off and on, i've had very vivid dreams in which the landscapes and the people are fully articulated -- no fuzziness, crystal clear, and many of those dreams i can remember (parts of anyway) even years later. they are almost always landscapes/ environments and people that i am not familiar with.

in these dreams there is almost always a rich emotional content -- frankly, much more emotionally full than my waking state. sometimes, upon awakening, it's as if the emotional bubble bursts and i return to the control of the rational mind.

there are times that i'm aware that i'm dreaming, but more often i'm aware that i can control the dream; consciously change the direction or content. having the explicit awareness that i'm dreaming (e.g. lucid dreaming) doesn't seem all that important to me, but being in a heightened state of awareness within my dream is.

from time to time i've tried to find corroborating data along the lines of my experience, but it seems that "vivid dreaming" is more associated with nightmares and that's rarely the case for me. in fact, more often than not, my vivid dreams are very memorable and enjoyable.

i'm just wondering if anyone here can provide any advice regarding how to pursue a better understanding and development of my dream experiences.

thanks in advance.