Arjen, I see what you mean now, I would say my usual dream sign is the big black cat that talks, or the little black cat. I had a small black cat who died, so if she is there then its obvious its a dream, and the talking black cat is quite obviously not real! If the big black cat comes, I become lucid very fast.

I also have location dream signs, as all my dreams take place in the same town and i recall the place from a previous dream, I have a strange de-ja-vue feeling, like my dream is trying to say' nope nothing new here' but my brain realises this is a copy location from another dream, and therefore I'm dreaming! This doesnt work when its somewhere new, and i will dream a normal dream, and only become lucid when i move from this new location into one of my familiar locations, and therefore see how it links into the dream town. Sometimes the black cat comes though, to the new place, and then i just need to go for a wander to link things up.

Sometimes i see its a dream, and im lucid, but i dont try to change anything as such....i just play things out. Other times i mess with it, changing people and places. I'm not sure I want god control, as i currently like the feeling that the people in my dreams are at least controlling themselves, and i'm not making them do things. Sometimes i become lucid, stop all the action, use the bridge and go where i want. This is my usual action for a nightmare. I go to my room, in my house, and play with the cats.

Chewnie, i'm not sure I have any advice for you, as I'm not sure what i'm doing myself to realise its a dream, and i have help from dream signs that i know well. I often go to bed thinking about the lucid i had the night before, and this helps me as i dream the same sorta place, and it triggers the lucid i think. As i'm not a taught LD, i don't have much of a technique!