Welcome New VP: Meghan Arcuri

The Horror Writers Association is proud to announce Meghan Arcuri as our interim Vice President, effective immediately. Meghan has worked tirelessly for the organization for the past several years. Two notable examples include helping us with our social media outreach and with sponsorships for our StokerCon events. She is generous, proactive, professional, and easy to work with. Meghan is a highly regarded writer, with her work appearing in many anthologies, including Chiral Mad 3, 18 Wheels of Horror, the forthcoming Borderlands 7, and many more to come. Upon accepting the position, Meghan had this to say: "When John asked me…

2018 Bram Stoker Award Winners & Nominees

The Horror Writers Association is proud to congratulation the winners and nominees of the 2018 Bram Stoker Awards for superiority. We proudly provide the list of talented nominees who reached the final ballot below for each category.

2018 Bram Stoker Awards® Update

Please note the Final Ballot of nominees for the 2018 Bram Stoker Awards® will be announced on February 23. The main timeline is as follows: February 23: Announcement of Stoker Nominees – the Final Ballot – on the HWA website, via Special IM, on the HWA Facebook page, and by Press Release. Works appearing on this Ballot are Bram Stoker Award® Nominees for Superior Achievement in their Category, e.g., Novel, and everyone may refer to them as such immediately after the announcement. Important Notes for those Appearing on the Final Ballot: If your work appears on the Final Ballot (i.e.,…

2018 Lifetime Achievement Award Winner Announced

Graham Masterton – Lifetime Achievement Award This year the Horror Writers Association announces Graham Masterton as Lifetime Achievement Award winner. He will receive the award at StokerCon™ 2019, held at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Masterton has provided many years of dedicated commitment to the horror community and the writing and publishing industry. “Members on the selection committee have fond memories of Masterton’s books,” reported HWA President, Lisa Morton. “Graham Masterton has influenced many horror writers. We are truly thrilled to bestow him with this award.” HWA offers the Lifetime Achievement Award once a year and…
New Bram Stoker Awards® Category Added

New Bram Stoker Awards® Category Added

The Horror Writers Association (HWA), the premier organization of writers and publishers of horror and dark fantasy, announces a new Bram Stoker Awards® category. A Short Non-Fiction category will be added to next year’s ballot. HWA President, Lisa Morton welcomes the new addition, stating: “As a writer who has written non-fiction at all lengths, a reader who loves articles and essays, and an admirer of academic study of dark fiction, I am pleased to announce this new awards category.” Ms. Morton is a scholar of dark fiction and she feels the new category will help foster and reward excellence in…

The 2017 Bram Stoker Awards Winners

2017 Bram Stoker Awards® Winners Providence, RI, March 3, 2018 The Horror Writers Association (HWA), the premier organization of writers and publishers of horror and dark fantasy, announces this year’s Bram Stoker Awards® winners after a ceremony held at the historic Biltmore Hotel in downtown Providence, Rhode Island. “We are excited to announce this year’s winners from another impressive list of finalists. The winners represent a broad spectrum of highly talented writers devoted to horror and dark fantasy,” said Lisa Morton, HWA President and multiple Bram Stoker Award winner. “Our members and awards juries have demonstrated considerable dedication and objectivity…

The 2017 Specialty Press Award Winners

Specialty Press Award (tie) – ERASERHEAD PRESS and INDEPENDENT LEGIONS PUBLISHING The annual Specialty Press Award recognizes a publisher outside the mainstream New York City publishing community that specializes in dark-themed fiction. Winners are typically “small presses” specializing in limited editions, small print runs, or the work of new and relatively unknown authors. The winner of the award is determined by a majority vote of the HWA Board. The Board of Trustees has chosen two winners for the 2017 Specialty Press Award: Eraserhead Press and Independent Legions Publishing. Founded in 1999, Eraserhead Press is an independent publisher of bizarro fiction and cutting-edge…

2017 Bram Stoker Awards® Preliminary Ballot Announced

The Horror Writers Association (HWA) is pleased to announce the Preliminary Ballots for the 2017 Bram Stoker Awards®. The HWA (see www.horror.org ) is the premier writers organization in the horror and dark fiction genre, with over 1,300 members. We have presented the Bram Stoker Awards in various categories since 1987. 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…
2017 Lifetime Achievement Award Winner – Linda Addison

2017 Lifetime Achievement Award Winner – Linda Addison

Lifetime Achievement Award – LINDA ADDISON The Horror Writers Association is pleased to announce that the winner of its Lifetime Achievement Award for 2017 is Linda Addison. This award, which is considered to be the highest honor awarded within the horror genre, is decided by a specially-appointed committee. This year’s Lifetime Achievement Award Committee, chaired by John R. Little and including Grady Hendrix, Erinn Kemper, Brian Matthews, and Becky Spratford, considered over 60 candidates but was unanimous in selecting Linda Addison. Linda Addison is an accomplished poet and the author of horror, science fiction, and fantasy stories.  She was the…

The Lifetime Achievement Award

THE LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD is presented periodically to an individual whose work has substantially influenced the horror genre. While this award is often presented to a writer, it may also be given for influential accomplishments in other creative fields. The award is presented each year during HWA's gala presentation of the Bram Stoker Awards. About the Award WHO MAY RECEIVE THE AWARD? To be eligible for this award, a candidate must either be at least sixty years of age by May 1 of the year of the award's presentation or must have first produced professional work in the field of…

Final Frame Film Competition Judges Announced

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   Short Horror Film Competition Judged by Z NATION’s Craig Engler   Providence, RI, November 3, 2017 The Horror Writers Association announces its third annual short film competition. On March 2, 2018, Final Frame will be held in conjunction with StokerCon 2018® at the fabled Biltmore Hotel in Providence, Rhode Island. The Final Frame film competition will celebrate the best in short horror films from around the globe. Everyone is encouraged to enter the competition. Selected films will be screened in the Garden Room of the Biltmore Hotel. A grand prize winner will be announced at the…

HWA’s HAUNTED NIGHTS released October 3rd!

ABOUT HAUNTED NIGHTS Sixteen never-before-published chilling tales that explore every aspect of our darkest holiday, Halloween, co-edited by Ellen Datlow, one of the most successful and respected genre editors, and Lisa Morton, a leading authority on Halloween. In addition to stories about scheming jack-o’-lanterns, vengeful ghosts, otherworldly changelings, disturbingly realistic haunted attractions, masks that cover terrifying faces, murderous urban legends, parties gone bad, cult Halloween movies, and trick or treating in the future, Haunted Nights also offers terrifying and mind-bending explorations of related holidays like All Souls’ Day, Dia de los Muertos, and Devil’s Night. “With Graveyard Weeds and Wolfbane…

2016 Bram Stoker Award® Winners Announced

The Horror Writers Association (HWA), the premier organization of writers and publishers of horror and dark fantasy, announces this year’s Bram Stoker Awards® winners after a ceremony held aboard the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California. “The winners for this year’s awards unquestionably represent the continued high-level state of the art in horror writing,” said Lisa Morton, HWA President and multiple Bram Stoker Award winner. “Our members and awards juries were dedicated to the selection process for outstanding works of literature, cinema, non-fiction, and poetry.” We proudly provide the list of talented winners along with the finalist nominees. Superior Achievement…

Interview with Horror University instructor Hank Schwaeble

We're wrapping up our series of interviews with StokerCon 2017's Horror University instructors with Hank Schwaeble, who tells us about his "Saying More With Less" workshop. Thanks for reading, and see you in Long Beach! Hank Schwaeble: Saying More With Less Saying More With Less—how to make your (and your characters’) words be worth a thousand pictures. “Omit needless words” is as close to a Prime Directive as we authors get, but how do you as a writer decide what is and isn’t needed? In this class I’ll focus on tips and techniques for energizing your prose through economy and…

Interview with Horror University instructor James Chambers

Here's the latest interview with one of our StokerCon 2017 Horror University instructors. This time James Chambers tells us about his workshop, "Picturing Fear: Writing Horror Comics and Graphic Novels." James Chambers: Picturing Fear: Writing Horror Comics and Graphic Novels The medium of sequential art offers endless opportunities for great horror stories—but writing comic books and graphic novels is unlike writing for any other medium. Although they share some common ground of visual storytelling with films and television, comics and graphic novels have unique elements of design, characterization, pacing, and creating suspense. Blending words and pictures to tell a story…

Interview with Horror University instructor Michael Arnzen

Here's the latest installment in our series of interviews with our StokerCon 2017 Horror University instructors. This time, Michael Arnzen tells us more about his "Making Readers Squirm" workshop.  Michael Arnzen: Making Readers Squirm This two hour workshop will cover insider tricks and tactics for crafting horror imagery—not just icons of the genre, but direct appeals to the reader’s sensorium— images that really hit readers in the guts. It will include a live writing activity with the aim of improving description of a gory or scary scene. Open to novelists, poets, flash fiction writers … anyone looking to sharpen their writing…

Interview with Horror University instructor Nicole Cushing

In today's interview with a StokerCon 2017 Horror University instructor, Nicole Cushing tells us about her workshop on "How to Give a Great Interview"! Nicole Cushing: How to Give a Great interview Author interviews can be a powerful tool to let readers know about your book, your personality and your unique take on your genre. They can also be difficult to do well. How much energy should you spend on an interview for a blog? How long should you make your answers? How comfortable are you with appearing on recorded interviews (whether they’re done by audio or video)? Would you…

Interview with Horror University instructor Tim Waggoner

Here's the latest in our series of interviews with StokerCon 2017's Horror University instructors - take it away, Tim Waggoner! Tim Waggoner: The Ultimate Guide to Writing Horror This session presents techniques for creating original, effective horror fiction. Topics covered include: · The difference between crime, suspense, thriller, and horror. · The difference between dread, terror, horror, disgust, and shock. · The horror equivalent of the hero’s journey. · Avoiding clichés. · Making your horror personal. · Taking new approaches to old archetypes. · Avoiding clichéd story patterns. · What, if any, are the limits in horror fiction? · How…

Interview with Horror University instructor Gretchen McNeil

Number five in our series of StokerCon 2017 Horror University instructor interviews is all about bestselling author Gretchen McNeil! Gretchen McNeil: Character-Driven Plotting and the 3-Act Horror Novel   Have you read Save the Cat? Have you poured over Story? Can you quote passages from The Hero With a Thousand Faces, The Writer’s Journey, and Story Engineering? Are you looking for a new approach to plot? If your answer to these questions is “YES” then Gretchen McNeil would love to introduce you to Constantin Stanislavski. Known as the godfather of modern acting techniques, Stanislavski’s approach to character reaches far beyond the…

Interview with Horror University instructor Kate Maruyama

Here's the third installment in our series of interviews with StokerCon 2017's Horror University instructors. Thank you, Kate Maruyama! Kate Maruyama: Tension & Scene: The Basics of a Uniquely Terrifying Screenplay Crash course in two hours: How to up the ante for your screenplay to get it noticed. The gatekeepers of Hollywood, the ones who decide if your script meets the eyes of a producer or executive or an actor, all read thousands of scripts for a living. And they are tired and they have seen it all. This two hour class will focus on the elements of scene, character, and…