Well, I'm new, so I guess I should write a little something about how I came upon this.

I had my first lucid dream about 2 years ago. Of course at that time I didn't know what to call it or that it was actually something people envied. I thought I was just weird.

I remember telling my friends, "Hey, a lot of times when I'm dreaming, I know I'm dreaming and I can control my dreams and wake myself up." I got some looks for that one, even funnier looks than the ones I got when I described the content of my dreams, which when compared to that of my friends, was amazing in its tendancy to contain sharp, accurate imagery, detailed plots, and in many cases use of all five senses. They just thought I was doing drugs.

One day on the clearance rack of a bookstore, I came across Our Dreaming Mind by Robert L. Van de Castle, Ph.D. It looked like a really good book, so I bought it and began casually browsing its pages. Chapter 15 discusses lucid dreaming fairly briefly, but it was all I needed to get me started. They have a name for this! Other people do this! Cool!

To paraphrase, I came upon all this quite by accident. I just wonder why I just had them, while other people try for it for years before it happens. I've been a fiction writer since the third grade, so that might be a contributor... my weirdness finally pays off!

Some non-dreaming things about me: I'm 16, female, a senior in high school, from New Orleans. Fiction aficionado, abuse victim, activist, internet addict, seeker of God, history enthusiast... and all that (spicy Creole) jazz.

Anyway, I'm excited to begin reading and posting with you guys. And yes, I'll forgive you if you fell asleep during that.