“Welcome to Halloween Haunts 2017” By Michele Brittany

The leaves are beginning to turn golden oranges, yellows, and reds, and there is a subtle change to cooler weather as I write, sitting here in Southern California. Appearing in my neighborhood and local stores are banners announcing the arrival of autumn and Halloween decorations. Soon bowls of sweets will sit near front doors and at the end of the month, little ghosts, goblins, superheroes, and such will appear on doorsteps singing out “Trick or Treat!” For aficionados of the horror genre, October is a fantastic month in which to catch broadcasts of classic and contemporary horror films, while for a few dozen horror writers, it’s an opportunity to share their memories of Halloweens past or scary moments that even made them pause.

Welcome to the 2017 edition of Halloween Haunts! For each day in October, members of the Horror Writers Association will present a memory of Halloween, a favorite tradition, share what they have learned in writing horror, as well as brief glimpses into creepy, scary, horrific worlds. Contributors hail from around the globe and include the exemplary talents of Lisa Morton, Ellen Datlow, JG Faherty, Maria Alexander, Lee Murray, Dan Rabarts, and many other incredible writers. You will not want to miss a single day, so bookmark this page now and join our Facebook event page!

Each day will feature a different writer’s perspective of Halloween. Many writers have graciously offered giveaways (see below) and/or excerpts from recent or soon to be released books. It’s a wonderful way to add books to your library, be inspired to create your Halloween traditions, or hone your craft.

If you’re a horror writer, horror studies academic or horror reader who hasn’t joined HWA, please consider doing so. HWA offers writers and horror scholars many benefits including mentoring, networking, market news, professional resources, and an academic conference. HWA presents the annual Bram Stoker Awards® at the Bram Stoker Award Weekend (StokerCon). You can learn more about joining here: https://www.horror.org/joinhwa.htm. Or send questions to: membership@horror.org.

THANK YOU! A huge thank you to all our contributors for sharing their anecdotes, traditions, suggestions for celebrating Halloween, as well as thoughts and advice on horror writing. As this is my first year as editor of Halloween Haunts, I am appreciative of the opportunity to work with this year’s group of contributors in addition to last year’s editor James Chambers, who provided me guidance and helpful tips along the way. Also, my thanks to Lisa Morton and Angel Leigh McCoy, working behind the scenes and to Greg Chapman for designing the fantastic Halloween Haunts banner!

GIVEAWAY RULES: In addition to their posts and excerpts, several of our contributors are offering e-book, print copies, and other prizes for the lucky readers who enter in each giveaway. If an author is offering a giveaway with their post, it will be noted and the prize described. Readers can enter the giveaway by posting in the comments section. Winners will be chosen at random and notified by e-mail. You may enter once for each giveaway, and all entrants may be considered for other giveaways if they don’t win on the day they post. You may also enter by e-mailing membership@horror.org and putting HH CONTEST ENTRY in the subject line.

BIO: Michele Brittany, editor of Horror in Space: Critical Essays on a Film Subgenre (2017, McFarland & Co. Publishers) and James Bond and Popular Culture: Essays on the Influence of the Fictional Superspy (2014, McFarland & Co. Publishers), is currently writing her first solo non-fiction book on mummies. She is the Book Review Editor for the Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics, Editorials Manager for independent publisher Fanbase Press, and a member of H.P. Lovecast, a monthly podcast analyzing Lovecraftian horror stories. An active academic member of HWA, she is the co-chair of HWA’s Ann Radcliffe Academic Conference, focused on horror studies as well as a member of the National Coalition of Independent Scholars (NCIS).