History That Never Was

Home of Dawn Vogel: Writer, Historian, Geek

Conceits of Whim and Fancy Out Today!

| July 12, 2022

My latest collection, Conceits of Whim and Fancy, is out today. It’s a collection of short and flash fiction, along with a handful of poems, all of which are fantasy. Fairy tales you’ve never read, magic workers young and old, and a few characters who defy description—all these and more can be found within Conceits of […]

Greek and Roman Myths in Old Legends and New Fables

| June 28, 2022

Because Greek and Roman mythology is some of the most commonly taught in the western world, it’s not surprising that a number of my pieces in Old Legends and New Fables reflect this knowledge. Even those pieces that deal with the legends of other cultures often get viewed through a Greek or Roman lens because of […]

Coming Soon: Conceits of Whim and Fancy!

| June 21, 2022

My newest collection, Conceits of Whim and Fancy, is coming soon! This collection is filled with fantasy stories and poetry, with witches, familiars, faeries, skeletal warriors, a dragon or two, goblins, liches, and much, much more. Fairy tales you’ve never read, magic workers young and old, and a few characters who defy description—all these and […]

May 2022 Publications

| June 9, 2022

In May, I had four pieces come out–two flash fiction, one microfiction, and one poem! My flash fiction piece, “Not Their Real Names,” appeared in The Arcanist. This story is a fun and quick high-tech heist story with some quite relatable characters and scenarios, though always with a twist! My microfiction piece, “I Need a […]

“Orbit 41” in New Moons Under Which to Sleep

| May 17, 2022

“Orbit 41” is an odd little piece of flash. I managed to squeeze three points of view into the story, and one of those points of view is that of a satellite. The story is based on the first Indian satellite, the Aryabhata, which was launched in 1975. After a few days in orbit, the satellite […]

Writing Small

| May 16, 2022

I moderated a panel on “Writing Small” at Flights of Foundry, during which we talked a lot about flash fiction and other stories told in very small word counts. I was on a similar panel four years ago, since which time I’ve written and sold a lot more flash fiction and gotten a better grasp […]

March 2022 Publications

| April 7, 2022

I’ve had a bunch of publications in March, and all of them are smaller pieces! “The Fall of Ocrone” was published in Martian last year, but recently, the Superfast Stories YouTube Channel produced an audio and video version of my story! It’s a quick sci-fi listen/watch (it’s only 100 words), and I love how it […]

“Senchado in Microgravity” in New Moons Under Which to Sleep

| March 29, 2022

“Senchado in Microgravity” began as a flash fiction piece based on a prompt of a very specific tea set. The image was super evocative, and MANY of the people who saw that prompt wrote stories about the “fishy tea set.” (The set had a goldfish theme, including as small sculpted goldfish at the bottoms of […]

“Brick-Red Love” in Intercity Illusions

| March 24, 2022

My story “Brick-Red Love” came out of a Drawlloween prompt of “bride”. While in the context of Drawlloween, I’m sure it was meant to be a Bride of Frankenstein reference, but I decided instead to write a bit of flash about a pair of brides, one of whom is suffering from some nervousness that she […]

Cover Reveal and Pre-Order Information for Doorways in the Gloom

| March 17, 2022

My next collection, Doorways in the Gloom is now available for pre-order! This collection contains short stories, flash fiction, and poetry with a darker vibe. Some of the stories approach horror, while others are just slightly spooky. Doorways can lead to many marvelous places. In this collection, however, the scenes they reveal are shrouded in gloom […]