History That Never Was

Home of Dawn Vogel: Writer, Historian, Geek

Sci-Fi Poetry in New Moons Under Which to Sleep

| June 14, 2022

New Moons Under Which to Sleep takes its name from a line in one of the poems included in the collection–specifically “Golden Migration (In Four Parts),” which is a golden shovel of Robert Frost’s “Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening.” “Golden Migration” is just one of the sci-fi poems in this collection. A few of […]

“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 […]

Review of Lost in the Archives by E. Saxey

| May 11, 2022

Lost in the Archives by E. Saxey (Lethe Press, 2022) is a collection of the author’s short stories, many of which have been previously published. The stories include several in historic settings with speculative elements, as well as modern and future settings, all rendered with exquisite characterization and inventive plot elements. Some of the stories […]

April 2022 Publications!

| May 5, 2022

I’ve got several new publications out this past month! My poem, “Here, I Rule,” appears in the April Not One of Us. This is a small printed zine, which you can order directly from the publisher. The poem is a look at a child’s adventure to another world. My drabble, “Consequence,” appeared in Martian: The […]

Review of Ghost Pirate Gambit by Jessie Kwak

| April 20, 2022

Ghost Pirate Gambit is the first book in Jessie Kwak’s Nanshe Chronicles, named after the ship her protagonists travel on. This new series is a prequel of sorts to Kwak’s first Durga System book, Starfall, with a strong focus on the interpersonal relationships of the crew and others onboard the Nanshe, as well as the […]

Dakota Travis: Saurallero Extraordinaire in New Moons Under Which to Sleep

| April 19, 2022

“Dakota Travis: Saurallero Extraordinaire” started with a title prompt, which was originally “Call Me a Sissy, But I’m Going to Ride this Dinosaur Side-Saddle.” The original title was perfectly evocative, inspiring me to write the obituary for a man who had died (of old age, mind you), but was known for this delightful utterance (which […]

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 […]

Review of Wistful Ascending by JCM Berne

| March 23, 2022

Wistful Ascending, the first book in the Hybrid Helix series by JCM Berne (The Gnost House, 2020), is an action-packed sci-fi/superhero novel with a fantastic cast of characters and plenty of plot twists to keep you guessing! Rohan is a Hybrid, the offspring of a human and an alien race called the il’Drach. That alien […]

February 2022 Publications!

| March 10, 2022

I had three new pieces out in February, all different sorts and lengths! “Promises Made” was accepted for the Glittery Literary Anthology Four and appeared early in the month. It’s an urban fantasy microfiction story about curses and promises related to the fae. The second one was one of the longest titled stories I’ve had […]