October 7th, 2025 In fiction, vampires need to consume human blood in order to survive. In reality: it only gets them high. October 1999. Burnsville, Minnesota. The Church of Virtue on Maple Island Road is the meeting place of two contrary groups of vampires: the Chamber of Commerce, a powerful political organization of active vampiresContinue reading “Maple Island: In Production Now”
Author Archives: dennisvogen
The Blame Game
September 25th, 2025 There has been so much nonsense this week that I personally don’t believe deserves addressing. But as the dad of an autistic child, I do have one thing to say. I know it’s our fault. It’s our fault that we created and brought this one-of-a-kind person into the world. It’s our faultContinue reading “The Blame Game”
The First
September 20th, 2025 Hey, pals. I have this sinking feeling that there are quite a few people who might misunderstand the First Amendment, but have no fear: if you read only one post about the Jimmy Kimmel situation this week, make it this one. (I will keep my personal feelings separate but will also disclose:Continue reading “The First”
Goosebumps & Shivers
September 19th, 2025 I love learning about who and what inspires the people who inspire me. Which is ironic, because it always makes me feel bad about my own inspirations. I’ll read an article about a critically-beloved writer in NYC and they’ll say something like: “I grew up in an extremely cultured household. I had readContinue reading “Goosebumps & Shivers”
Picking Cherries
September 16th, 2025 I don’t have to say anything about Charlie Kirk; then again, I don’t have to say anything about anything at all, and yet I keep writing here anyway. Right away, I want to make two things I believe clear: 1. I don’t think anybody should be murdered, and this particular incident wasContinue reading “Picking Cherries”
The Story of Maple Island
September 14th, 2025 Holy cow, you guys. On the first day of preorders, we hit a quarter of the goal I have for sales. You’re amazing, thank you so much. A lot of questions came up, but really just a big one: what the heck is Maple Island about? This video will explain it all,Continue reading “The Story of Maple Island”
Maple Island Presale Starts Now!
September 12th, 2025 MAPLE ISLAND IS AVAILABLE FOR PREORDER NOW! You can go to my website (dennis vogen dot com) and order yourself a copy (or a dozen) now! This is a limited time presale and I will be shutting down this option before I order my first shipment of books. In case you forgotContinue reading “Maple Island Presale Starts Now!”
The Rules
September 10th, 2025 I don’t write about my dad as much as I do my mom; it’s not that he isn’t as important to me, but that he’s still here. Often, when I’m writing about her, I find it’s my attempt to lose as little of her as I can, like collecting stardust into aContinue reading “The Rules”
The Ends of the Earth
September 1st, 2025 There’s a trend, but it’s not new; it’s as old as internet time (was there anything before?). It’s the idea of sharing something that absolutely does not need to be shared, in order to signal to others what tribe or political feed you subscribe to. There’s a version of this making theContinue reading “The Ends of the Earth”
A Little Less Alone
August 28th, 2025 I live in Minnesota, so the morning after a horrific tragedy I wasn’t surprised to open social media and see so much ugly. (A lot of this ugly coming from so-called Christians, who have spent the last decade showing all of us, including their Jesus, who they really are and what theyContinue reading “A Little Less Alone”
The Den 