When many people hear the word “horror”, they immediately think “oh, no – blood and guts.” They might be shocked to realize that not only is the horror genre broad enough to encompass everything from Stephen King to American Horror Story to Joyce Carol Oates, but also its core fans are people who care passionately about the world and are dedicated to making their voices heard.
Over the course of its thirty-plus-year history, the Horror Writers Association (HWA) has worked not just to promote horror writers and the genre, but also to provide mentorship and opportunities for writers, scholarships, literacy programs, library programs, and after-school programs for young writers. At its website www.horror.org, HWA offers how-to writing articles, information on the genre, and more, while its sister site www.horrorscholarships.com includes instructions on how to apply for HWA’s five different scholarships (all of which are open to the general public). Through HWA’s Mentorship Program, newer authors are paired with established pros who can help them learn more about both the craft and business of writing, while HWA’s yearly StokerCon™ event ( http://www.stokercon2018.org ) presents “Horror University”, a slate of intensive workshops that provide writers at all levels of their career with hands-on training in everything from creating the perfect villain to utilizing social media. The yearly StokerCons also host: the Ann Radcliffe Academic Conference, at which academic papers are presented; the Final Frame Film Competition, highlighting juried selections of the best short horror films from around the world; Librarians’ Day, in which librarians share their insights and interact with authors; and the iconic Bram Stoker Awards®, the premiere prize in the horror genre, given out yearly in eleven categories. StokerCon 2018 will take place from March 1st to March 4th at the historic Biltmore Hotel in Providence, Rhode Island, with Guests of Honor Ramsey Campbell, Craig Engler, Caitlín R. Kiernan, Victor LaValle, Elizabeth Massie, and Sam Weller.
To learn more about HWA, please visit us at http://www.horror.org
Lisa Morton bio: Lisa Morton is an award-winning screenwriter, a novelist, and a Halloween expert, and she has served as President of the Horror Writers Association since 2014. She lives in the San Fernando Valley, and can be found online at www.lisamorton.com.
Link to high-res photo: http://www.lisamorton.com/graphics/headshot1.jpg
