History That Never Was

Home of Dawn Vogel: Writer, Historian, Geek

Review of Skin Thief by Suzan Palumbo

| November 29, 2023

Skin Thief by Suzan Palumbo (Neon Hemlock, 2023) is a collection of dark and atmospheric stories, the majority of which have been previously published in major speculative fiction magazines. The stories contain a variety of themes including family (particularly sisters, but also mothers and daughters) and Trinidadian culture. Stories I really loved in this collection […]

My Latest Fantasy Publications

| November 16, 2023

If you’re looking for a fantasy story or poem to read, here are a few of my recent fantasy publications! Back in March, Wyngraf published my flash fiction story, “The Truth of Their Tunes.” This was a piece inspired by a piece of music, specifically Radiohead’s song “Creep.” Though the lyrics don’t come up in […]

Review of Tea Leaves by Jacob Budenz

| September 27, 2023

Tea Leaves by Jacob Budenz (Amble Press, 2023) is a collection of short stories with mostly queer protagonists and filled with a delightful surrealness across the various worlds and characters of the stories. I first became familiar with Jacob’s writing when he submitted the story “Seen” for DefCon One’s I Didn’t Break the Lamp anthology, which […]

Review of Danged Black Thing by Eugen Bacon

| June 14, 2023

Danged Black Thing by Eugen Bacon (Apex Book Company, 2023) is a collection of short stories, the majority of which have been previously published. A handful of the stories are co-written with other authors, but all of them display Bacon’s distinctive storytelling voice. Favorites in this collection for me were “When the Water Stops,” a […]

Wreathed in Steam Out Today!

| June 13, 2023

My latest collection, Wreathed in Steam, is out today! Clockworks, airships, and more! Wreathed in Steam contains stories and poetry in the steampunk and gaslamp fantasy realms, with clever mechanisms and daring characters. Be astonished and amazed by heroics, fast thinking, and innovation! You can get Wreathed in Steam as an ebook from your favorite online retailer!

Wreathed in Steam Cover Reveal!

| May 16, 2023

My next collection of short stories and poetry is a steampunk and gaslamp fantasy collection, containing a variety of tones and topics. It’s called Wreathed in Steam, it’s due out on June 18th, and it’s available for pre-order now! Clockworks, airships, and more! Wreathed in Steam contains stories and poetry in the steampunk and gaslamp fantasy realms, with […]

Have You Checked Out Droplets from the Universe

| May 11, 2023

Have you checked out my latest collection yet? Droplets from the Universe is chock full of joyful and humorous science fiction stories and poetry. There’s still conflict, tension, and peril, but in the end, the characters see the rainbow beyond the clouds, in a manner of speaking. Droplets from the Universe contains short stories, flash fiction, and […]

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 […]

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, […]

Recent Fantasy Publications

| February 21, 2023

If you’re looking for a fantasy story or poem to read, here are a few of my recent fantasy publications, along with some of my collections! My flash fiction piece, “Patience,” appeared in Wyldblood Magazine in October of last year. It’s a brief piece about working to get what you want, but not being impatient about […]