History That Never Was

Home of Dawn Vogel: Writer, Historian, Geek

“There Is No I in Heavenly Host” in The Sidewalk Diverges

| April 25, 2023

“There Is No I in Heavenly Host” was 100 percent written on a quasi-dare. The editors for a special speculative fiction issue of Friends Journal mentioned wanting to see a story in which a biblically accurate angel dealt with having their name misspelled on their coffee order. So I wrote it. And they loved it. This […]

“Unconventional Soulmates” in Conceits of Whim and Fancy

| April 20, 2023

My story “Unconventional Soulmates” came directly from the idea of “what if someone used magic to locate their soulmate, but the soulmate the magic found wasn’t at all who they were expecting?” In this story, which flips back and forth from the POV of the seeker and the found, I also explore how soulmates from […]

Droplets from the Universe Out Today!

| April 18, 2023

My latest collection, Droplets from the Universe, is out today! This is a collection of joyful and humorous science fiction stories and poetry. Droplets from the Universe contains short stories, flash fiction, and poetry from the vastness of the universe. Dance amongst these droplets of joyful and humorous science fiction. Not every story starts happy, but […]

Are You a Patreon Backer?

| April 13, 2023

If you like my writing, are you a backer on my Patreon? My Patreon is a great way to support me and learn about what I’m working on! I share updates about my works in progress, including snippets of stories for my patrons! Backing me at $3 a month or more gets you copies of […]

Nervous about Summer Camp? Don’t Read This Book

| April 11, 2023

If you’re a parent who’s nervous about sending your kids to their first overnight camp, or if you’re a kid who’s worried about going to an overnight camp, you definitely should not read Camp Haunt. If you’re not, however, and you enjoy spooky occurrences happening to people who aren’t you, you should check it out. It’s […]

New Publications in March 2023

| April 6, 2023

I had four new pieces out in March this year! My sijo (Korean poetry form) “Diamond Snow” came out in the eighth issue of Frozen Wavelets at the beginning of the month. It’s a sort of dark sci-fi, very brief piece. On the opposite side of things from my other publications this past month, Wyngraf published […]

The Story in the Middle: Brass and Glass 2

| March 30, 2023

When the editors at Razorgirl Press (the original publishers of my Brass and Glass series) asked me whether Brass and Glass: The Cask of Cranglimmering was a stand-alone book, I was pretty sure the answer was “no.” But I hadn’t entirely figured out what would happen in the rest of the books. But that question got me […]

The Stories of Denizens of Distant Realms

| March 28, 2023

Denizens of Distant Realms is a brief collection, with only six short stories. All of these stories have stuck with me over the years, though, and I’ve even recently been writing another story that fits into the same tangentially shared world of these six stories. If these stories were placed in chronological order, I think […]

Don’t Forget to Check Out The Sidewalk Diverges!

| March 23, 2023

Have you checked out The Sidewalk Diverges yet? It’s chock full of contemporary fantasy short stories, shorter fiction pieces, and poetry. The vast majority of the pieces are upbeat and slightly humorous, though there are always a few dark corners here and there. In The Sidewalk Diverges, stories about magic sit alongside stories about superpowers, while ghosts, […]

“If the Light is Constant” in Doorways in the Gloom

| March 21, 2023

“If the Light is Constant” is a creepy little piece of microfiction that delves into perception and reality. Because it’s so brief, it leaves a bit to the imagination, which I find is often very effective for horror and other dark stories. The monsters you can’t quite see are far more terrifying than the ones […]