History That Never Was

Home of Dawn Vogel: Writer, Historian, Geek

“Easy as a Bag of Cookies” in The Sidewalk Diverges

| December 17, 2024

“Easy as a Bag of Cookies” in The Sidewalk Diverges was inspired by a meme about Greek gods in the modern day. While I can’t remember the entirety of the meme, it involved Cerberus in some way. So I combined Cerberus, Hades, and Persephone into a contemporary story where Cerberus escaped his leash and found a […]

Eight Plus Years of The Trouble with the Tick-Tock Tabby

| November 26, 2024

The Trouble with the Tick-Tock Tabby was one of the first things I self-published, back in 2016. At that point, I’d been writing for publication for more than seven years. And since 2016 was eight years ago (!), that means I’ve been writing for fifteen years, which is a wild thing to think about. But […]

Weathering Youth Out Today!

| November 12, 2024

Today’s the day! My latest collection, Weathering Youth, is out today! Within its pages, you’ll find younger protagonists and protagonists with a more youthful outlook, regardless of age. The stories range from humorous to dark, within the realms of fantasy, sci-fi, and horror! This is my largest collection to date, with almost fifty stories and poems! […]

Coming in November: Weathering Youth!

| October 10, 2024

My next collection, Weathering Youth, will be out on November 12, and it’s a collection of stories and poetry featuring younger protagonists and others with a youthful outlook on the world! In worlds with dragons, starships, and monsters, adults aren’t the only people. Children, teenagers, and young adults are sometimes the heroes of the story … […]

Books and Stories for Younger Readers

| May 16, 2024

I’ve got some recent story publications that are suitable for younger readers, along with several books, including steampunk and fantasy titles! My flash fiction story “Dinosaur Seeds” is written for an adult audience, but kids would very likely enjoy this story, which involves a child planting “dinosaur” seeds and the surprising results! This story can […]

Books for Kids

| September 19, 2023

I’ve got several books for kids, including steampunk and fantasy! The Trouble with the Tick-Tock Tabby is a middle grade book featuring girl detectives Chrysanthemum and Marigold Marsh. The setting is a steampunk Victorian era. The characters are 9 and 12 years old, which skews toward the younger end of middle grade, but the reading level […]

Review of The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

| May 3, 2023

Years ago, when I was a kid, my grandma took me to see The Black Cauldron in the theater. This stands out to me mainly because we were the ONLY people in the theater for a weekday matinee. But I recalled enjoying the movie, which I’ve probably seen once or twice since them. Meanwhile, my husband […]

“Princess Last Picked” in Conceits of Whim and Fancy

| February 16, 2023

A few of the stories in Conceits of Whim and Fancy feature younger protagonists, and “Princess Last Picked” is one of them. This was a story inspired by the idea of presenting an unlikely character to save the members of her community when their greatest strength (literally) was used against them. I was utterly thrilled with […]

Things for Kids to Read

| January 12, 2023

I’ve recently published my third book for younger readers to read, so it’s time to update this list! The Spiders of the Shifting Swamp is my children’s picture book that I also illustrated! It’s a fantasy story in which spiders run a shop and interact with other swamp creatures. The reading level is about right […]

“The Wearisome Worry of the Wily Waif” in C. & M. Marsh, Girl Detectives

| December 29, 2022

“The Wearisome Worry of the Wily Waif” is the sole Marsh sisters story I’ve written that has not been picked up for publication. But I included it in C. and M. Marsh, Girl Detectives because I think it’s a good story. It’s a little different than the other Marsh sisters stories, which have the girls confronting […]