HORROR WRITERS ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCES 2016 SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS

Visit the official scholarship site for up-to-date information. The Horror Writers Association (HWA) is pleased to announce the 2016 recipients of its five scholarships. Carina Bissett and Karen Bovenmyer have been awarded (respectively) the HWA Scholarship and the Mary Shelley Scholarship, each worth $2,500. John Reinhart has been chosen for the Dark Poetry Scholarship ($1,250), and James Anderson and Kevin Wetmore have been chosen as recipients of the Rocky Wood Memorial Scholarship Fund for Non-fiction Writing. Earlier this year, Sumiko Saulson was awarded The Scholarship From Hell, which included travel, accommodation, and a slate of educational workshops at HWA's inaugural…
And the Clock Strikes Three AM: Time and Timing in Terror, the Sequel

And the Clock Strikes Three AM: Time and Timing in Terror, the Sequel

Last month’s terror-time about time-and-terror was firmly grounded in reality—creating timetables that work inside the book (natural character reactions to stimuli and logical story flow) and inside the reader’s mind (pacing appropriate for the specific audience’s needs, and avoiding shattering suspension of disbelief through overuse of techniques that, when used sparingly, should enhance tension). Immersion was the name of the game, with an end goal of a truer feeling story and the horror that relating to it as true-ish brings. But before you go off and wed your story to reality at the altar of believability, there’s another variable. Unless…
HWA August Membership Drive

HWA August Membership Drive

Have you been thinking about joining the Horror Writers Association for a while, but just haven't gotten around to it yet? Or maybe you were a member in the past and have been wondering if you should rejoin. The answer is YES, and now's the time! HWA is currently offering Active/Affiliate/Associate/Academic membership (with proof of sales) for $37 (for the remainder of 2016), and Supporting membership for $27 (for 2016). What do you get for that? Well, if you've never seen our excellent monthly newsletter (edited by Kathy Ptacek), we've made a sample issue available for you to take a…
And Now for Something Completely Different: Adding Humor to Your Horror

And Now for Something Completely Different: Adding Humor to Your Horror

With the popularity of dark comedies, it should be no surprise that horror and humor can be a compelling mix. However, when it comes to young adult books, few succeed at the balance that keeps a funny horror book from losing its edge or appearing to try too hard. Here are a few humorous elements used in YA horror to enhance the story, characters, or setting without sacrificing their horror-ness. WORD PLAYS AND PUNS Puns and other forms of wordplay can range from clever to groan-inducing, and they are a little of both in Croak by Gina Damico. In the…
And the Clock Strikes Midnight: Time and Timing in Terror, Part I

And the Clock Strikes Midnight: Time and Timing in Terror, Part I

Whether it’s the beeping of an alarm clock marking a night over too soon, a school buzzer announcing the start of a test period, or the chime of a grandfather clock in an old house declaring the start of the witching hour, there are lots of ways that time can provoke dread. So, when writers look no further than flashbacks and verb tenses, they miss out on timely tension opportunities. With a little attention towards the timing of the horrors in your story—pacing as well as narratively—you can save yourself time in revisions, time better spent dreaming up new nightmares…

Interview with Bram Stoker Award® Winning Author Alessandro Manzetti and Editor Jodi Renée Lester

Bram Stoker Award® Winning Author Alessandro Manzetti’s work has been published extensively in Italian, including novels, short and long fiction, poetry, essays, and collections. English publications include his collections ‘The Monster, the Bad and the Ugly’ (co-written by Paolo Di Orazio),’The Massacre of the Mermaids’, ‘The Shaman and Other Shadows’, ‘Dark Gates’ (co-written by Paolo Di Orazio), ‘Stockholm Syndrome’ (co-written by Stefano Fantelli), and the poetry collections ‘Eden Underground’, ‘Venus Intervention’ and ‘Sacrificial Nights’ (co-written with Bruce Boston). His stories and poems have appeared in Italian, USA and UK magazines and anthologies, such as Dark Moon Digest, The Horror Zine,…
Scary Out There with Kaitlin Ward

Scary Out There with Kaitlin Ward

NOTE: Listeners, this was our first attempt at an audio interview. We know there is a slight echo and the background noise isn’t ideal, but bear with us as we creep into the world of audio interviews. Thanks for your understanding and patience! Hello Horror Fanatics! Today Scary Out There is sitting down with Kaitlin Ward, the author of Bleeding Earth (Adaptive Books, February 2016). Listen as Kaitlin discusses how she came up with the idea for Bleeding Earth, why it's important for children and teens to read horror, and more. Kaitlin Ward grew up on a dairy farm in Monroe,…

Markets for Horror Writers & Poets

We receive a lot of e-mail messages from writers asking if we recommend certain markets for horror fiction. As a rule, we as an organization do not endorse specific markets, but we do advise everyone -- not just our members -- to submit work to markets that pay a professional rate of 5 cents per word or more. That being said, we also understand that such markets are few, and the competition there is fierce. No one said this was easy, after all For some sound advice on submitting your fiction in today's marketplace, please click here. A few popular…

Librarians!

Welcome to the Librarian's page on the Horror Writers Association (HWA) website! We hope you will find everything you need in terms of tools, recommended reading lists, and information about our authors. At any time, please feel free to contact us at HWA@horror.org. One of the HWA's missions is to encourage public interest in and foster an appreciation of reading in general, and horror and dark fantasy literature for adults, teens, and children in particular. To that end, our members take part in public readings and lectures whenever possible, we publish a newsletter for booksellers and librarians, and we are…
Young Adults “Write Now” Endowment Program

Young Adults “Write Now” Endowment Program

Horror Writers Association (HWA) announces Young Adults Write Now endowment program to fund teen-oriented writing programs at libraries. The Horror Writers Association (HWA), the premier organization of writers and publishers of horror and dark fantasy and home of the iconic Bram Stoker Awards®, will be offering endowments to libraries to fund teen writing programs as part of its ongoing dedication to furthering young adult literacy. The Young Adults Write Now fund will provide up to five endowments of $500 each per year for selected libraries to establish new, or support ongoing, writing programs. The program is currently open to United…
HWA announces HALLOWS’ EVE anthology

HWA announces HALLOWS’ EVE anthology

Hallows’ Eve An Anthology for the HWA Editors: Ellen Datlow & Lisa Morton Submissions open to HWA members only. You can join here, if you like. Hallows’ Eve is an anthology focused on the horror genre’s favorite holiday – Halloween. We’re looking for stories that explore the festival from many different points of view. Tell us something about the emotional meaning of the night. Investigate a historical angle that isn’t often done. Give us a story about a modern element of the holiday – haunted attractions, large-scale festivals, retailing – that we haven’t seen before. Halloween has a two-thousand-year history…
HWA Opens Registration to StokerCon 2017

HWA Opens Registration to StokerCon 2017

The Horror Writers Association (HWA), the premier organization of writers and publishers of horror and dark fantasy and home of the prestigious Bram Stoker Award®, today announced it will begin accepting registrations for StokerCon 2017 this Friday, June 10, at 12:00 AM EDT. To register, visit http://hwa46.wildapricot.org/event-2262526. For HWA members, registration is $99 (USD); registration for non-HWA members is $115 (USD). Upon successful registration, attendees will receive a discount code for Queen Mary hotel accommodations. StokerCon 2017, the HWA’s second annual convention, is scheduled for April 27-30, 2017 aboard the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California. Guests of Honor for…

The Seers’ Table June 2016

The Seers Table! Tom Calen, Diverse Works Inclusion Committee Chair Whew! How about that StokerCon 2016? I hear Vegas is considering the new nickname “Stoker City.” Congratulations to all the winners and the amazing coordinators who set the bar extremely high for future StokerCons! As June is traditionally celebrated as Pride Month, the Diverse Works Inclusion Committee has assembled a collection of writers from the LGBT community (and its allies). Some names you’ve likely come across before, while others will be new introductions. In both cases, these writers have substantial bodies of work and have made significant literary and advocacy…

HWA Horror Poetry Showcase III: Featured Poets

For the first time the HWA Horror Poetry Showcase was reserved strictly for members. Despite some nervousness that a more limited field would yield limited results, there was a tremendous breadth of themes and styles. The poems detail horrors on a scale from the cataclysmic down to the ordinary turned malicious and twisted. While honored that many of the great poets of the genre submitted entries, I am equally proud of those entries from authors who had never previously published a single poem. I want to thank jury members Stephanie Wytovich and John Palisano for the joy and energy they…
2015 Bram Stoker Awards® Winners

2015 Bram Stoker Awards® Winners

The Horror Writers Association (HWA), the premier organization of writers and publishers of horror and dark fantasy, tonight announced this year’s Bram Stoker Award® winners during a ceremony held as part of StokerCon 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Superior Achievement in a Novel Winner: Paul Tremblay – A Head Full of Ghosts (William Morrow) Also nominated: Clive Barker – The Scarlet Gospels (St. Martin’s Press) Michaelbrent Collings – The Deep (self-published) JG Faherty – The Cure (Samhain Publishing) Patrick Freivald – Black Tide (JournalStone Publishing) Superior Achievement in a First Novel Winner: Nicole Cushing – Mr. Suicide (Word Horde) Also…
How to Watch the Bram Stoker Awards® Ceremony

How to Watch the Bram Stoker Awards® Ceremony

The Horror Writers Association (HWA), the premier organization of writers and publishers of horror and dark fantasy, today released the link to the Bram Stoker Awards® ceremony live stream. The awards ceremony begins at 7:30 PM PDT on Saturday, May 14, 2016. The ceremony is part of HWA's inaugural StokerCon, which opened yesterday at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas, NV, and runs through Sunday, May 15. Live Stream Link: http://www.onlineevent.com/bramstokerawards2016/ Awards include Superior Achievement in a Novel, First Novel, Short Fiction, Screenplay, and seven other categories. The ceremony will be emceed by author and seven-time host, Jeff Strand. For…

The Seers Table – May 2016

Welcome to the third installment of The Seers Table—the HWA’s new hub for highlighting exciting and diverse voices in the horror/dark fantasy genre! This month we’ve an excellent collection of authors, poets, and screenwriters, including the first ever winner of HWA/StokerCon’s Scholarship from Hell! Tananarive Due Southern California resident, Tananarive Due is a former Cosby Chair in the Humanities at Spelman College (2012-2014), where she taught screenwriting, creative writing and journalism.  She also teaches in the creative writing MFA program at Antioch University Los Angeles. The American Book Award winner and NAACP Image Award recipient is the author of twelve…
HWA Announces Finalists in Short Film Competition

HWA Announces Finalists in Short Film Competition

The Horror Writers Association (HWA), the premier organization of writers and publishers of horror and dark fantasy, today announced the thirteen finalists in its inaugural Lucky Thr1t3en Horror Short Film Competition. The film competition—part of the HWA’s StokerCon 2016—received entries from nearly twenty countries during its six-month submission window. The thirteen finalists hail from Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States. “We received a staggering number of quality submissions,” said Brad Hodson, chair of the film festival. “But, the work of these finalists is truly remarkable.” The Finalists The Barber's Cut - Mark Brocking (UK) Boogey-Woogie -…
HWA Announces its Mentor of the Year

HWA Announces its Mentor of the Year

The Horror Writers Association (HWA), the premier organization of writers and publishers of horror and dark fantasy, today announced Tim Waggoner as this year’s recipient of the organization’s Mentor of the Year Award. The HWA’s Mentorship Program Chairperson and the Program’s Committee select the award’s recipient. The award will be presented at HWA’s inaugural StokerCon in Las Vegas, during the Bram Stoker Awards® ceremony on Saturday, May 14, 2016. Tickets to the banquet and the convention are on sale at www.stokercon2016.com. The awards presentation will also be live-streamed. “Tim Waggoner is the perfect mentor. Certainly Tim is a fantastic writer.…
Scholarship From Hell Recipient Announced

Scholarship From Hell Recipient Announced

The HWA would like to congratulate Sumiko Saulson, winner of Horror University’s Scholarship From Hell! The scholarship includes roundtrip domestic travel to Las Vegas, accommodations at the Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel & Casino, registration to StokerCon 2016, and as many workshops as she can attend!   Additionally, the HWA awarded a runner-up mini-scholarship (registration & five workshops) to Hillary Dodge!   Congratulations to you both!