History That Never Was

Home of Dawn Vogel: Writer, Historian, Geek

“Kinuyo-yo” in Intercity Illusions

| November 1, 2022

My story “Kinuyo-yo” started with a couple of images, which involved a brightly colored boat, a sense of motion, and not much evidence of a means of propulsion. It turned into a story about an unusual young girl living in a flooded city and figuring out ways to make one of her weird hobbies into […]

Recent Spooky Stories

| October 27, 2022

If you’re looking for some spooky reads of short stories, here are a few of my recently released dark and horror stories! “Memento Mori” appears in Queer Weird West Tales. This story involves Calamity Jane and the detritus of Wild Bill Hickok’s life, along with some surreal and spooky events related to the two. “Dangers […]

Spooky Stories and Novella

| October 25, 2022

If you’re looking for some spooky Halloween reads, I’ve got a few options available! Volatile Figments is a collection of six dark contemporary fantasy short stories in which the protagonists deal with the supernatural. They generally tend toward dark contemporary fantasy rather than horror, so they’re spooky without being terrifying. Doorways in the Gloom is […]

“Superstitions” in Conceits of Whim and Fancy

| October 20, 2022

“Superstitions” started as a Drawlloween piece that turned into a story about a woman following in her father’s footsteps as a ship’s captain, but struggling in a sexist line of work. Her solution to the problem isn’t necessarily the one she planned, but it works out in the end. Conceits of Whim and Fancy contains […]

Kickstarter Recommendation: Paradoxical Pets

| October 19, 2022

I’m super excited about the Kickstarter for Paradoxical Pets because I’ve got a story in this anthology! The anthology is, as expected, about unusual pets and other animals, but it’s also specifically for younger readers! For me, this meant I got to write a cute little story about a girl and her dog … which might […]

“The Recondite Riddle of the Rose Rogue” in C. & M. Marsh, Girl Detectives

| October 18, 2022

“The Recondite Riddle of the Rose Rogue” was the first story I had published, so it’s got a very warm place in my heart. It’s the first story of Chrysanthemum and Marigold Marsh and the mechanical garden they live in. The mechanical garden was inspired by a friend’s child mishearing “botanical garden” as “mechanical garden,” […]

Post-Apocalyptic Reads

| October 13, 2022

I have two post-apocalyptic novellas: Scenes from a Quiet Apocalypse and Barren. The former is a much more recent apocalypse, one that hits just before the book begins. The latter is an apocalypse that hit within the main character’s lifetime, but she’s lived in a post-apocalyptic world for longer than she spent in the pre-apocalyptic world. If […]

“Memorandum from the Panel for the Identification of Consequentially Chosen Youth” in Intercity Illusions

| October 11, 2022

“Memorandum from the Panel for the Identification of Consequentially Chosen Youth” is not the longest title I’ve written, but it’s among them. But this flash fiction piece needed a slightly ridiculous title to go with the tongue-in-cheek “PICCY” organization detailing what should and should not be done when you’re looking for a Chosen One. The […]

September 2022 Publications

| October 6, 2022

For the first time in a long while, I don’t have any new stories or poems out in the past month! But not to fear, there will be more new pieces coming soon. So in the meantime, I did have a new book out this month: Camp Haunt. Which is actually a re-release of sorts, since […]

Flash Fiction in Avatar of Freya

| September 29, 2022

In addition to the two longer stories in Avatar of Freya, I also included two flash fiction pieces featuring Friday Jones and friends! “Friday Jones’ Helpful Advice for Preventing Your Super-Genius Roommate from Becoming a Supervillain” features Friday and her college roommate, Janella, aka Johnny Turbo, who is a mechanical genius with a super suit she […]