Black Heritage HWA interview series: Introduction by Linda D. Addison

Black History Month is the annual recognition of African-Americans and their role in U.S. past and present history. As our country celebrates the achievements of Black Americans other countries are also devoting a month to shining light on Black history. Our part in every area of America now and in the past is still being discovered, still expanding. This country is built by a wide variety of people from different cultures, and just as horror fiction has many sub-genres, Black horror writers are not defined by one type of writing. From gothic through paranormal, supernatural, weird and so on, Black…

HORROR WRITERS ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCES INAUGURAL PUBLISHERS COUNCIL

February 1, 2022 – In an effort to build stronger relationships between the Horror Writers Association (HWA) and horror publishers, editors, and industry professionals, the HWA announced the launch the first ever HWA Publishers Council. This council will be comprised of an elected cohort of individuals who represent a diverse spectrum of genres and outlets across the publishing industry—from traditional small and mid-size presses, niche publishers, and indie micro-presses to magazines and other horror publishing industry professionals. The inaugural council will be overseen by HWA President John Palisano and co-chaired by HWA Board of Trustees Treasurer Maxwell Gold and Black…

HWA Statement on Maus and Other Banned Books

The Horror Writers Association condemns banning books in no uncertain terms. We believe authors need to be able to tell their stories without fear of reprisal. The banning of “Maus” in a Tennessee school district, which was done on the eve of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, is nothing less than censorship and anti-Semitism. "Maus'' is not the first text to be excluded from school libraries. Recently, LGBTQ+ texts have been banned in a Washington state school district, and many other books by authors of color have been censored in districts across America. These are chilling examples of censorship, racism, anti-Semitism,…

The 2021 Bram Stoker Awards® Preliminary Ballot Announced

The Horror Writers Association (HWA) is pleased to announce the Preliminary Ballot for the 2021 Bram Stoker Awards®. The HWA (see https://horror.org/) is the premier writers organization in the horror and dark fiction genre, with more than 1,800 members. We have presented the Bram Stoker Awards in various categories since 1987 (see http://www.thebramstokerawards.com/). Works on this ballot are not referred to as “nominees” or “finalists.” Only works appearing on the Final Ballot may be referred to as “nominated works” and their authors as “finalists.” The HWA Board and the Bram Stoker Awards® Committee congratulate all those appearing on the Preliminary Ballot. Notes…

Gothic Classics: The Castle of Otranto & The Old English Baron

Gothic Classics: The Castle of Otranto & The Old English Baron, the next volume from the HWA's Haunted Library of Horror Classics! With an introduction by Robert McCammon. Order here. The series is edited by Leslie Klinger and Eric Guignard, and is published by Poisoned Pen Press.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for the Horror Writers Association (HWA) Membership Questions | StokerCon Questions | Horror University Questions | Technical Questions | Email Us General Questions about the HWA What is the Horror Writers Association (HWA)? The HWA is an international organization of writers and publishing professionals dedicated to promoting dark literature and the interests of those who write it. Who can join the HWA? Membership is open to professional and aspiring writers of horror fiction, non-fiction, screenplays, poetry, and other forms of dark literature, as well as agents, editors, publishers, and others involved in the production and promotion…

Health Insurance for HWA’s Canadian Members

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Today, the HWA is proud to announce Canadian members can apply for insurance through the Writers’ Coalition. This has been a benefit we’ve been asked for since as long as I’ve been a member, and I’m delighted to see this finally come to pass.
John Palisano
HWA President

The Seers’ Table January 2022

The Seers Table! December 31, 2021 by HWAWeb Linda D. Addison, Member of the Diverse Works Inclusion Community You can see any of “The Seers’ Table” posts since inception (March 2016) by going to the HWA main page and selection menu item “Our Blogs / Diverse Works”. Kate Maruyama introduces: Darcie Little Badger is a Lipan Apache writer with a PhD in oceanography. As an author, she specializes in speculative fiction, especially horror, science fiction, and fantasy. Her critically acclaimed debut novel, Elatsoe, was featured in Time Magazine as one of the best 100 fantasy books of all time. Elatsoe also won the Locus award for Best First…

The Seers’ Table December 2021

The Seers Table November 30, 2021 by HWAWeb Kate Maruyama, Member of the Diverse Works Inclusion Community Tish Jackson suggests: Briana Morgan loves all things literary: from Gatsby to vampires. Using her Bachelors in English, she has been editing manuscripts and writing reviews for a decade, but has also been writing her own stories at the same time. She started her fiction career writing compelling Young Adult stories. Her debut novel, Blood & Water, is especially chilling for its subject matter. The protagonist is a young teenager trying to survive a deadly pandemic and save what’s left of his family. The virus has killed…

Horror U Courses Begin in January!

The HWA is pleased to announce our Winter 2022 Horror University Online session! From January 10th to March 7th, 2022, Horror University presents six workshops for horror writers everywhere interested in refining their writing, learning new skills and techniques, or perfecting their manuscript presentation. Full descriptions and registration information is available in the Horror University School on Teachable: https://horror-university.teachable.com/courses. REGISTRATION IS OPEN NOW! The Winter 2022 Session includes: January 10: Building Your Very Own Haunted House: How to Write Effective Ghost Stories with Gwendolyn Kiste. January 24: Into the Dark Woods: Incorporate Fairy Tale Symbolism and Archetypes in Your Stories with Carina…

In Memoriam: Anne Rice

It is a difficult day as we at the Horror Writers Association join the legions who mourn the loss of beloved author Anne Rice. A true titan in her field, her works have influenced several generations of readers and writers, and continue to do so. May her works become as immortal as her Lestat, forever a gateway into her many unforgettable worlds. Thank you for all you've given us. Our best to her family and loved ones during this difficult time. John Palisano President, Horror Writers Association In 2003, the Horror Writers Association awarded Anne Rice with the Lifetime Achievement…

Seeking Member Volunteers

Two (2) Volunteers for Horror University The Horror University team needs two Assistant Coordinators to work with the Coordinators in planning, scheduling, and running Horror University Online and Horror University at StokerCon. The work will include gathering and compiling information from instructors about their workshops, such as images and support materials to set up classes. Assistant Coordinators may also help with running actual workshops online or in-person as needed. The time commitment will be cyclical, requiring two to three hours per week for up to four weeks during the scheduling phase and one to two hours a week during a…

Dragon’s Lair Post #1 : Hello

For those that don’t know me, I am your friendly neighborhood winged beast, quietly sleeping on a hoard of jewels, gold, and other assorted treasures far off in some dark mountainous place. Not really, but as your HWA Treasurer, it’s cool to think so, right? I want to be the first to welcome you all to the Dragon’s Lair, a blog dedicated to candid conversations about the business of the Horror Writers Association where I’ll talk about everything from fundraising ideas, networking, branding, you name it! There will also be interviews from industry professionals and authors. It is my hope…

New Bram Stoker Awards® Category: Superior Achievement in Middle-Grade Novel

The Horror Writers Association (HWA) is proud to announce the addition of a brand new category in the Bram Stoker Awards®: Superior Achievement in a Middle-Grade Novel. For purposes of this Award, Middle-Grade novels are defined as novels (see clause IVe) intended for the age group 8-13 with word length beginning at 25,000 words. A Middle-Grade novel that is deemed to be a ‘First Novel’ according to Rule IVf may qualify for consideration in the ‘First Novel’ category (see Rule IVr) if the author insists in writing that the work be considered for ‘First Novel’ rather than ‘Middle-Grade' novel; otherwise,…

HWA Poetry Showcase Volume VIII Now Available!

The Horror Writers Associations presents their eighth annual Poetry Showcase, featuring the best in never-before-published dark verse. Edited by Stephanie M. Wytovich with judges Angela Yurkio Smith and Sara Tantlinger, this year features the first Crystal Lake Poetry Contest winner, poems from Cynthia Pelayo, Lindy Ryan, Sarah Reed, Alicia Hilon, Corrinne DeWinter, Sumiko Saulson, Querus Abuttu, Carina Bissett, Lee Murray and many more poems from the talented members of the Horror Writers Association. Cover artwork by Robert Cabeen. Now Available in Print and on Kindle

Interview with Winner of the Rocky Wood Scholarship 2018

Winner of the HWA’s ROCKY WOOD SCHOLARSHIP in 2018, Joe Maddrey has recently released the fruit of those labors with the release of Adapting Stephen King Volume I: Carrie, ‘Salem’s Lot and The Shining from Novel to Screenplay from McFarland press. What inspired you to tackle such an interesting topic? In a way, this book was an offshoot of two of my previous books. The first one was a biography of Stephen King, for which I read all of King’s published works. (Everyone says they’ve read all of King’s books… but they’re usually lying. I even made it through The…

HWA ANNOUNCES SUMMER SCARES READING PROGRAM 2022

Spokesperson and Timeline The Horror Writers Association (HWA), in partnership with United for Libraries, Book Riot, and Booklist, is proud to announce the fourth annual Summer Scares Reading Program. Summer Scares is a reading program that provides libraries and schools with an annual list of recommended horror titles for adult, young adult (teen), and middle grade readers. It introduces readers and librarians to new authors and helps start conversations extending beyond the books from each list and promote reading for years to come. Summer Scares is proud to announce their 2022 spokesperson as author Alma Katsu: "I'm thrilled to be…

Letter from the Disney Must Pay Joint Task Force

Dear Members, In April 2021, we let you know about a contract issue with Disney that affected multiple authors across different writer organizations. We’ve made some progress and a few authors have been paid. Unfortunately, we’ve also uncovered more concerning issues in the process. We still need your help to raise awareness of the #DisneyMustPay campaign, which has yet to be resolved. Authors may still be missing royalty statements or checks across a wide range of properties in prose, comics, and graphic novels. As of today, our list is incomplete and only based on properties and/or publishers for which we…

The Seers Table November 2021

Kate Maruyama, Member of the Diverse Works Inclusion Community   Linda D. Addison introduces: Erica Ciko Campbell was obsessed with short fiction all her life, and was lucky enough to start reading for the pro SFF magazine Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores in June 2019. From here, her love of short fiction reached twisted new apexes and took over her life, so she reached out to the creators of Novel Noctule literary horror magazine to take it even farther. She started there as a Trainee Editor in October of 2020, and was promoted to the Flying Fox Flash Editor in February 2021. The stars were…