Paula D. Ashe (she/her) is an author of dark fiction. Her debut collection — We Are Here to Hurt Each Other — was released in early ‘22 by Nictitating Books. She is a member of the Horror Writers Association and an Associate Editor for Vastarien: A Literary Journal. She lives in the Midwest (which is best) with her family.
Tamika Thompson is a writer, producer, and journalist. She is author of speculative fiction collection, Unshod, Cackling, and Naked (Unnerving Books, 2023), which Publishers Weekly calls “powerful,” “unsettling,” and “terrifying,” as well as author of horror novella Salamander Justice (Madness Heart Press). Her work has appeared in several speculative fiction anthologies as well as in Interzone, Prairie Schooner, The New York Times, and Los Angeles Review of Books, among others.
Photo by Mig Dooley
Tracy Cross’s work has been featured in several podcasts and mass market anthologies. Her first book, Rootwork, was published by Dark Hart Publishing in 2022. She lives in Washington, DC, and is an active member of the HWA. She loves disco and shares her latest exploits and information on my blog: tracycwritesonline.com. She is on instagram as tracycrosswrites and twitter as tracycwrites.
Mo Moshaty is an Afro-Latina screenwriter, author and producer. Raised within the clash of her mother’s Yaqui heritage and her father’s strict Southern Baptist upbringing, Mo’s work contains worlds in which characters of color strive for identity, sentiment, and belonging within the dark psychological horror genre.
Candace Nola is an award-winning horror & dark fiction author. Her work includes Breach, Beyond the Breach (2021 novel of the year from the Horror Authors Guild), Hank Flynn, Bishop, and Earth vs The Lava Spiders. She curated and edited The Baker’s Dozen, the Splatterpunk award-winning, extreme horror anthology, in Dec. 2021. She has various poems and short stories published in several magazines and anthologies with more set to release in the next year.
Donyae Coles is a horror author who has been published in a variety of short fiction venues. She devotes her free time to her other great love, art. Her debut, Midnight Rooms, is forthcoming from Amistad. You can find more of her work on her website, www.donyaecoles.com and follow her on Twitter @okokno.
Ashon Ruffins is a native New Orleanian and a military Veteran. He earned a Master’s Degree in Business Administration, while also holding certifications for several other pro-fessions. He loves the art of storytelling in all genres and believes the best lessons in life can be told through fiction. Descent of a Broken Man is his debut novel. Ashon is also a huge mental health advocate.
Photo by Norma Velazquez of My Phototude
I’m KC Loesener, author of The Eve of Darkness and several horror short stories. Proud introvert, bird lover, and a huge horror fan.
Tonia Ransom is the creator and executive producer of NIGHTLIGHT, an award-winning horror podcast featuring creepy tales written by Black writers, and Afflicted, a horror thriller best described as Lovecraft Country meets True Blood. Tonia has been scaring people since the second grade, when she wrote her first story based on Michael Myers. She’s a World Fantasy Award Winner, and This is Horror Award runner-up. She lives in Austin, Texas. You can follow Tonia @missdefying on all the socials. Risen is her debut book.
Nuzo Onoh is a Nigerian-British writer of Igbo descent. She is a pioneer of the African horror literary subgenre. Hailed as “the Queen of African Horror”, Nuzo’s writing showcases both the beautiful and horrific in the African culture within fictitious narratives.
While John Edward Lawson has been called “The forgotten black man of horror” he also regularly publishes science fiction, nonfiction, and literary fiction. His work has been nominated for the Dwarf Stars, Rhysling, Stoker, and Wonderland Awards in addition to the Pushcart Prize. For his work as an editor John received the 2018 HWA Specialty Press Award. He currently serves as President of the Horror Writers Association.
Micah is the author of two ancient Africa-inspired epic fantasy novels. His debut, Lost Gods, was shortlisted for a British Fantasy award, as well as Starburst Magazine’s inaugural Brave New Words award.
Lori Titus is a USA Today Bestselling author and Bram Stoker Award finalist. She writes stories that center on the monster in humans and the humanity of beasts. When she’s not plotting out new adventures for her characters she lurks on social media. You can catch up with her on Facebook or on her website, The Darkest of Lore https://loribeth215.wordpress.com/ .
Vaughn A. Jackson began writing somewhere around the time he could grasp a writing utensil, and has since authored two novels: Up from the Deep and Touched by Shadows. His writing falls under the speculative fiction umbrella, often blending elements of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. He is a member of the Horror Writers Association, and lives somewhere outside of Baltimore. When he isn’t writing, Vaughn is probably playing video games, watching bad (read: great) science fiction movies, or trying frantically to keep up the guise of being an adult. You can find Vaughn screaming into the void @Blaximillion on Twitter or posting photos of whatever tickles his fancy on Instagram @blaximillon_author.
P.M. Raymond hails from New Orleans but currently lives on the East Coast with 27 cookbooks and an imaginary dog named Walter. You can find her enjoying a café au lait and indulging in the storytelling mastery of Shirley Jackson, M.R. James, Joe Hill, Tananarive Due, and manga maestro, Junji Ito. Her work has appeared in Flash Fiction Magazine, Kings River Life Magazine, Dark Fire Fiction, Pyre Magazine, The Furious Gazelle, Dark Yonder, and Rock, Roll, and Ruin anthology from Down & Out Books. Find her at www.pmraymond.com or follow her on Twitter.
Tara Campbell is a writer, teacher, Kimbilio Fellow, fiction co-editor at Barrelhouse, and graduate of American University’s MFA. Her horror has been published in Strange Horizons (“Sasabonsam,” Tangent Online Recommended Reading List 2017), Nightlight (horror by Black writers), and Speculative City (“Spencer,” Tor’s “Must-Read Speculative Fiction” March 2020). She’s the author of a novel and four multi-genre collections, including Midnight at the Organporium which earned a starred review from Publishers Weekly. She teaches fiction at venues such as American University, Johns Hopkins University, Clarion West, Catapult, The Writer’s Center, and Hugo House. Read more and connect at her website: www.taracampbell.com
Kevin L. Williams is a husband, father of five, and Gothic Horror author from San Antonio, Texas. A former independent filmmaker, he has written, directed, and edited four indie feature films, numerous screenplays that will never see the light of day, and several Horror novels. This year he is set to publish a Gothic Romance series of novels, another Gothic Horror series, and the first part of his long-gestating YA/Speculative Fiction series. Kevin also hosts a podcast called Speaking of Gothic, where he discusses Gothic Horror movies.
Photo by Ankh Photography.
The resident Afrofuturist at the Kheprw Institute and an editor at Apex Magazine, his work has appeared in places like Cemetery Dance, Weird Tales, Magazine of F&SF, Uncanny Magazine, & Classic Monsters Unleashed. His books include Sweep of Stars, Unfadeable, Pimp My Airship, Buffalo Soldier, and The Usual Suspects. He was nominated for the Bram Stoker Award for editing Dark Faith. You can learn more about him at MauriceBroaddus.com or follow on his socials @MauriceBroaddus.
