StokerCon 2026: Full Schedule

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7:00am EDT

Boardroom

Thursday June 4, 2026 7:00am - 10:00pm EDT

Crawford

The HWA Boardroom. HWA Officers, Trustees, and StokerCon volunteers only.

Thursday June 4, 2026 7:00am - 10:00pm EDT
Crawford

Con Ops

12:00pm EDT

Registration

Thursday June 4, 2026 12:00pm - 7:00pm EDT

Third Floor Coat Check

Check-in for StokerCon 2026! Receive your name badge and your swag bag.

This is also a good place to find someone who can answer your questions about the Con.

Thursday June 4, 2026 12:00pm - 7:00pm EDT
Third Floor Coat Check

Con Ops

2:00pm EDT

Author Readings

Thursday June 4, 2026 2:00pm - 2:50pm EDT

Armstrong

Speakers

Curtis Schlak

Founder, Escribo Studio Writing Software

Curtis Schlak is an Author Accelerator certified Book Coach, as well as a novelist and screenwriter. He was recently shortlisted for the Writers Guild Foundation Veterans Mentorship. Jackson Ford (THE GIRL WHO COULD MOVE SH*T WITH HER MIND) has commented that Curtis’ debut novel... Read More →

Celina Thompson

Celina Thompson is basically a vampire. She is a disabled author with multiple invisible illnesses which cause sunlight to be painful, require blood transfusions, and even make garlic off limits. This served as inspiration for her debut novel, Sanctuary (a #1 Amazon Best Seller in... Read More →

Thursday June 4, 2026 2:00pm - 2:50pm EDT
Armstrong

Author Readings

2:00pm EDT

Author Readings

Thursday June 4, 2026 2:00pm - 2:50pm EDT

Fayette

Speakers

Jacques Mersereau

Author, Day and Night Media, LLC

Fellow Halloween People,

My name is Jacques Mersereau. I've made my living as an artist and video director for over forty years. I am an Emmy winning movie-maker and ran the University of Michigan's Video Studio for the last twenty years. I started my career in one of the USA's first ska bands opening for... Read More →

Kathleen Palm

Jes Malitoris

I am a trans-nonbinary horror and dark fantasy author from North Carolina with a PhD in history and a day job in books marketing. My work has been featured in horror magazines and speculative fiction anthologies, shortlisted for Brave New Weird: Volume 3, and included on the Stoker award reading list... Read More →

Thursday June 4, 2026 2:00pm - 2:50pm EDT
Fayette

Author Readings

3:00pm EDT

Author Readings

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT

Fayette

Speakers

Edward J. Flora

Author, Gravesend Books

Ed is a horror author and audiobook narrator. His most recent book, In The Shadow of a Broken Spire, is a small-town folk horror story. He is a fan of cosmic horror, ghost stories and discovering new indie authors.

Matthew Mercier

Stacie Herrington

Author | Screenwriter | Film Journalist

Stacie writes funny-scary-feminist horror for page and screen. She is the author of Dead Husband Energy: A Comedy-Horror Novelette. You can find her poetry in HWA Poetry Showcase XI (2024) and XII (2025), and the StokerCon Souvenir Anthology 2025. Stacie is the film columnist... Read More →

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT
Fayette

Author Readings

3:00pm EDT

Author Readings

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT

Armstrong

Speakers

Tiffany Michelle Brown

Author of How Lovely to Be a Woman: Stories and Poems. Co-host of the Horror in the Margins podcast.

Sarah Faxon

Sydney Bollinger

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT
Armstrong

Author Readings

3:00pm EDT

Author Readings

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT

Lawrence

Speakers

Charles Barouch

Ann Heyward

Ann O’Mara Heyward is a horror fiction and non-fiction writer in Cleveland, Ohio. Her short story “The Carny” recently received the Supernatural Fiction Award from The Ghost Story (theghoststory.com). Her short fiction will be adapted by the NoSleep Podcast (air date TBA... Read More →

Raymonde Chira

Author

Raymonde Chira (she/they) is a writer, illustrator and librarian based in New York City. She is the author of multiple dark short stories and comics, having been published in Ghost Parachute, Dark Matter Presents: The Off-Season, Let Her Be Evil, and Bump in the Night (forthcoming... Read More →

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT
Lawrence

Author Readings

3:00pm EDT

Don’t Forget to Like and Subscribe: How to Work with Horror Influencers

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT

Westmoreland

Lauded as the modern way to reach readers, book influencers have seen great success with places like BookTok and Bookstagram, where they frequently drive trends. Some influencers have even been able to become acquiring editors in their own right. But is engaging with an influencer the best choice for an author? What kind of etiquette should be expected between authors and influencers? Further, how can authors protect themselves and spot scams? This panel will include discussions on proper behavior, how to deal with problematic influencers, and best practices to establish healthy professional relationships.

Moderators

Emily Hughes

Author, critic, listmaker, Darker Times

Speakers

Agatha Andrews

Lorin Dearing

Michelle Delgado

Hi! I'm Michelle, a horror fan, journalist, and constant reader based on Washington's Olympic Peninsula. For the past decade, I've covered arts and culture for national publications including Smithsonian, Wired, The Atlantic, Vox, LitHub, and Catapult, among others.

But my relationship to writing transformed (for the better) in 2025 when I began covering horror. Over the past year, I've written somewhere in the neighborhood of 90,000 words for my weekly newsletter, Scare Me! From interviews with Nat Cassidy, Neil McRobert, Night Worms' Sadie... Read More →

Stephanie Gagnon

Host, Books in the Freezer Podcast

Christina Persaud

Writer, Articles of Horror

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT
Westmoreland

Business and Craft of Writing and Publishing

3:00pm EDT

Welcome to the Darkive

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT

Somerset

Rare books and literary archival collections can be fertile ground for academic research, creative inspiration, and documentation of the writing process and publishing industry. Join us for a panel that uncovers how primary source research in the University of Pittsburgh Library System’s horror studies collections has been used to generate and inspire both academic and creative works, the processes behind this type of research, and the value that creating your own archive can provide to the next generation of writers and researchers.

This panel is sponsored by the University of Pittsburgh Library System

Moderators

Kathy Haines

Librarian/Archivist, University of Pittsburgh

Speakers

Bridget Keown

Professor, University of Pittsburgh

Bridget Keown is a Teaching Associate Professor in the Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies Program at the University of Pittsburgh, and is the head of the Gender and Science Initiative. She earned her PhD in history at Northeastern University, where her research focused on the... Read More →

Ariana Marien

Dave V. Riser

Writer & Researcher

Victoria Timpanaro

Graduate Student/Educator/Film Scholar, Rutgers University

Educator and film scholar. PhD candidate with focus on women in genre film.

Lisa Wood

President, Horror Writers Association

L. Marie Wood is an award-winning psychological horror author and screenwriter. She won the Golden Stake Award for her novel The Promise Keeper. Her screenplays have won Best Horror, Best Afrofuturism/Horror/Sci-Fi, and Best Short Screenplay awards at several film festivals. Wood... Read More →

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT
Somerset

Business and Craft of Writing and Publishing

3:00pm EDT

HU: Medusa's Children Writing Horror from the Bones of Myth and Fairy Tale

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 4:50pm EDT

Washington

In this two-hour workshop, writers will excavate the ancient narratives found in fairy tale and myth to discover the dark truths hidden inside these familiar forms. Trace the evolution of oral storytelling to traditional tale types, utilize folkloric tools to unearth literary legacies and mythic motifs, and crack the bones of contemporary stories to expose unexpected connections in both the monstrous and the mundane. Participants will leave with a deeper understanding of mythic structure, a toolkit of approaches for retelling and subversion, and a series of transformative prompts designed to lead intrepid explorers through the labyrinth and into the dark wood.

This is a separately ticketed workshop. For more information on Horror University and registration information see: https://www.stokercon.com/horror-university

Speakers

Carina Bissett

The Storied Imaginarium

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Washington

Horror University

3:00pm EDT

Dealers Room

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 8:00pm EDT

Allegheny Ballroom I

Thursday June 4, 2026 3:00pm - 8:00pm EDT
Allegheny Ballroom I

Dealers Room

4:00pm EDT

Author Readings

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT

Fayette

Speakers

Heather Hein

Writing Heights Writers Association

Heather Hein is a Rocky Mountain Wordsmith who lives in Colorado with a menagerie of people, pets, and plants. Though her heart belongs in the west, she spent her high school years living in Iowa City where she (really!) worked at Hy-Vee Food Store before moving on to bigger and better... Read More →

Carina Stopenski

Teen Librarian, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh

academic HWA member | library advisory council member | pgh chapter co-chair | phd student of literature | author of STUFFED (unveiling nightmares) and THE THINGS WE DO FOR BLOOD (alien buddha press)

Daniel Carpenter

Commissioning Editor, Titan Books

Horror commissioning editor at Titan Books, author of Hunting by the River (Black Shuck Books, 2024)

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Fayette

Author Readings

4:00pm EDT

Author Readings

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT

Lawrence

Speakers

Peter Rosch

Author

Peter Rosch is the author of What The Dead Can Do, Future Skinny, But I Love You, and My Dead Friend Sarah, and other dark fictions, many born from the addictions he chased while living in New York City. He’s sober now but remains an addict’s addict: he can turn anything fun into a serious problem... Read More →

Danielle Ackley-McPhail

Author, Editor, Publisher, eSpec Books

Award-winning author, editor, and publisher Danielle Ackley-McPhail has worked in publishing for over thirty-five years, been a published author for twenty-five years, and a publisher for eleven years. She is also a book and cover designer, having worked on hundreds of books in... Read More →

Andrew Robertson

Founder, Great Lakes Horror Company

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Lawrence

Author Readings

4:00pm EDT

Author Readings

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT

Armstrong

Speakers

Teel James Glenn

writer

Teel James Glenn has killed hundreds and been killed more times-- on stage and screen as he has traveled the world for forty plus years as a stuntman, fight choreographer, swordmaster, jouster, illustrator, storyteller, bodyguard, actor and haunted house barker.
His stories have... Read More →

D. Matthew Urban

Author

D. Matthew Urban hails from Texas and lives in Queens, NY, where he reads weird books, watches weird movies, and writes weird fiction. A collection of his stories, Shaky Pictures of Vanished Faces, was published in 2025 by Cursed Morsels Press, and his work has appeared in such v... Read More →

Ananda Lima

Author

Ananda Lima is the author of the linked short story collection Craft: Stories I Wrote for the Devil (Tor Books, 2024) and the poetry collection Mother/land (Black Lawrence Press, 2021), winner of the Hudson Prize. Her work has appeared in American Poetry Review, Poets.org, Ke... Read More →

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Armstrong

Author Readings

4:00pm EDT

Something in the Water: Aquatic Horror

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT

Somerset

Aquatic horror goes way beyond Jaws. Our fear of what might lurk in the dark water is almost primordial—maybe humanity’s first fear. This panel explores the history of aquatic horror in literature and film—and offers a glimpse into what the future may hold.

Moderators

Lisa Kröger

Trustee, Horror Writers Association

Horror writer. Author of MONSTER, SHE WROTE and TOIL AND TROUBLE. Cohost of the Know Fear Cast and The Monster, She Wrote podcast.

Speakers

Andy Davidson

Andy Davidson is the Bram Stoker Award-nominated author of In the Valley of the Sun, The Boatman's Daughter, and The Hollow Kind. His novels have been listed among NPR's Best Books, the New York Public Library's Best Adult Books of the Year, and Esquire’s Best Horror of the Year. His short stories have appeared online and in print journals, as well as numerous anthologies. Born and raised in Arkansas, Andy makes his home in Georgia, where he teaches creative writing at Middle Georgia State University. He lives with his wife, Crys... Read More →

Alma Katsu

Alma Katsu is the author of historical horror novels such asThe Hunger and The Fervor, as well as the Red Widow spy series. Her books have received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and Library Journal, been featured in the NY Times and Washington Post, been nominated for multiple prestigious awards (and won a few), and appeared on numerous Best Books lists including NPR, the Observer, Barnes and Noble, Apple Books, Goodreads, and Amazon... Read More →

Nick Cutter

Real name: Craig Davidson. I write horror under the name Nick Cutter.

Hazel Zorn

I'm an oil painter and SFF/ Horror writer-- REEF MIND is out now from Tenebrous Press!

Nicole M. Wolverton

Horror Writer, Editor, & Academic, Professionally Unsettling Fear Enthusiast

Nicole M. Wolverton is the author of A Misfortune of Lake Monsters (2024, CamCat Books/Marble Press) and the upcoming Meat Sweats (March 2027, Horrorsmith Publishing) and Mother Mort's Carnival Phantasmagoria (October 2027, Ethereal Visions Publishing). She served as Editor of th... Read More →

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Somerset

Horror Genre and Media

4:00pm EDT

How to Get the Best Out of StokerCon

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT

Cambria

Welcome to StokerCon! Now what? If you’re a first-time attendee, new to the horror community, or simply seeking a better handle on how to keep up with everything happening at StokerCon, this is the panel for you. A group of StokerCon veterans and organizers will help you know what to expect, how to plan your time, what our different programming options offer, and how to meet your favorite horror writers without scaring them. Drop into for a crash course on navigating the ins and outs of the HWA’s annual convention.

Moderators

Lila Denning

HWA-Volunteer Coordinator, St Petersburg Library System

Speakers

Marc Abbott

Author/Teacher/Storyteller/Vice President Horror Writers Association

I’m the author of Sinister Ascension, the horror anthologies Hell at the Way Station (Winner of the African Literary award for Best Anthology)and Hell at Brooklyn Tea. My works have been featured in Blackened Roots, The Chaos Clock, Under Twin Suns, Even in the Grave, New York State... Read More →

Rhonda Jackson Garcia AKA RJ Joseph

academic and creative writer/editor/professor, RJ Joseph, Writer/Speaker

Rhonda Jackson Garcia, AKA RJ Joseph, is a Stoker Award™ and Shirley Jackson Award nominated, Texas based academic and creative writer/professor whose writing regularly focuses on the intersections of gender and race in the horror and romance genres and popular culture. She has... Read More →

Kevin Kennel

Hello, I am a fiction writer with many writing projects in various forms of development. I have recently been published in the anthology: Satan Rides Your Daughter Again and have had some poetry published online at misfitsmiscellany.com Some of my favorite writers are: Grady Hendrix... Read More →

Jonathan Lees

Jonathan Lees has spent over twenty years championing filmmakers through his programming work with the New York Underground Film Festival, Anthology Film Archives, TromaDance, and currently at the Final Frame Horror Short Film Competition at StokerCon.
He has recently produced arcane texts such as "We Have (Never) Been Here Before" in The Rack (Vol. II) and “To What Do We Owe This Pleasure” from the Bram Stoker Award nominated, Long Division: Stories of Social Decay, Societal Collapse and Bad Manners. Other stories in print... Read More →

Sarah Read

Lisa Wood

President, Horror Writers Association

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Cambria

HWA Spotlight

4:00pm EDT

Meet Your HWA Chapter Chairs

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT

Westmoreland

Moderators

Douglas Ford

Speakers

James Chambers

Trustee; Co-Chair, StokerCon Governing Committee; Chair, Horror University, Horror Writers Association

James Chambers is the Bram Stoker Award® and Scribe Award-winning editor and author of A Bright and Beautiful Eternal World, On the Night Border, On the Hierophant Road, the graphic novel, Kolchak the Night Stalker: The Forgotten Lore of Edgar Allan Poe, and editor of Under Twin... Read More →

KC (Kristina) Grifant

Author, Editor, San Diego HWA co-chair

A previous StokerCon chair, KC Grifant is an award-winning writer based in Southern California who creates internationally published horror, fantasy, science fiction, and weird west stories. Dozens of her short stories have appeared in podcasts, magazines, games, and Stoker-nominated... Read More →

Francesca Maria

SF Bay Area HWA Co-Chair, Black Cat Publishing

Francesca Maria writes dark fiction surrounded by cats near the Pacific Ocean. She is the award-winning, bestselling author of They Hide: Short Stories to Tell in the Dark from Brigids Gate Press, the co-editor of Black Cat Tales: An Anthology of Black Cats which debuted as a... Read More →

Crystal O’Leary-Davidson (C. O. Davidson)

Writer and Teacher

Christopher Hawkins

Co-chair, Chicagoland Chapter

Christopher Hawkins (he/him) is the multi-award-winning author of Downpour and Suburban Monsters. His latest novel is I Contain Multitudes.

Rami Ungar

I am a novelist from Columbus, Ohio specializing in horror and dark fantasy. I have published six books and several short stories.

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Westmoreland

HWA Spotlight

4:00pm EDT

Open Mic Poetry Reading

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 5:30pm EDT

Butler

Our annual Open Mic Poetry Readings hosted by Linda D. Addison!

Open Mic is a great place to read your poetry to a supportive audience and to be inspired by hearing the poetry of others.

Each poet reads for 5 minutes or less.

The host will loop around the room until we run out of time. All poets are welcome.

Note that this session is schedule for 90 minutes.

Moderators

Linda Addison

Trustee, Horror Writers Association

Thursday June 4, 2026 4:00pm - 5:30pm EDT
Butler

Horror Genre and Media

5:00pm EDT

Author Readings

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT

Lawrence

Speakers

Ryan Marie Ketterer

Norman Prentiss

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT
Lawrence

Author Readings

5:00pm EDT

Author Readings

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT

Armstrong

Speakers

Katrina Carruth

Luke Dumas

Author

Luke Dumas is the USA Today bestselling author of Nothing Tastes as Good, The Paleontologist, and A History of Fear. He is the winner of an ITW Thriller Award and his work has been optioned for film and TV. He received his master’s degree in creative writing from the University of Edinburgh and has worked in nonprofit philanthropy for more than a decade. Luke was born and raised in San Diego, Calif... Read More →

Jaq Evans

I'm a speculative fiction and horror author based out of Richmond, VA. My debut novel, WHAT GROWS IN THE DARK, was published in 2024 by MIRA / HarperCollins, and my short fiction appears in Fusion Fragment, Three-Lobed Burning Eye, and elsewhere. My pronouns are none/she/they.

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT
Armstrong

Author Readings

5:00pm EDT

Author Readings

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT

Fayette

Speakers

Jack LaRoche

QAA

Book reviewer. Wildlife/Exotic animal rehabber. Werewolf enthusiast.

K.A. Schultz

author illustrator, Dakeha Taunus LLC

Kimann (K.A.) Schultz is the author of three horror short story collections NEITHERIUM, GÖTHIQUE, and KHRYSTMASS; PÔËTÍQUE Dark Poems & Lyric Poetry, JACOB A Denouement in One Act, and A LETTER FROM KRAMPUS
She was an independent blogger at Huffington Post 2013-2018, was also... Read More →

John Collins

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT
Fayette

Author Readings

5:00pm EDT

No One Wants to Publish Mr. Hyde: Professional Etiquette for Horror Writers

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT

Cambria

The horror writing community is a small world, and you never know where a new publishing opportunity might come from. It’s important to be professional and to maintain good relationships and practices as a working horror writer. But what does that mean? What are “best practices” when it comes to engaging with agents and editors, with publishers, fellow authors, and even in social media? Where is the line between personal and professional interactions? Our panelists will discuss these questions and more.

Moderators

Hildy Silverman

Speakers

Danielle Ackley-McPhail

Author, Editor, Publisher, eSpec Books

Meghan Arcuri

Jennifer Barnes

Managing Editor, Raw Dog Screaming Press

Jennifer Barnes is managing editor of Raw Dog Screaming Press which has been publishing off-kilter books for nearly two decades. She spent four years as an editor for The Dream People Literary Magazine. Her children’s book, Better Haunted Homes and Gardens, illustrated by Kristen... Read More →

Dennis K. Crosby

Michael Dolan

Editorial Director, Winding Road Stories

Michael Dolan is a writer and editor with over 25 years of experience at the highest levels of publishing. In addition to being the author of several books, he has served as executive editor for many publishing companies, including Condé Nast. As the founder of Winding Road Stories... Read More →

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT
Cambria

Business and Craft of Writing and Publishing

5:00pm EDT

Monster Evolutions

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT

Westmoreland

The portrayal of creatures in horror has continuously changed to fit styles and tastes of the time. Through the lens of classic film monsters such as vampires, werewolves, and zombies, we will explore how they evolve to fit different times and attitudes. This discussion will further examine how these portrayals have been reinvented in film and on the page as well as what new creatures are on the rise.

Moderators

Victoria Dalpe

Victoria Dalpe is a Providence-based horror writer and painter. To date, her short fiction has appeared in over sixty anthologies. She has put out the collection Les Femmes Grotesques and the horror fantasy trilogy Selene Shade: Resurrectionist for Hire with CLASH Books. Book 2 Selene... Read More →

Speakers

Bill Bridges

Author, Game Designer

Erik Hanson

Cradle to the Grave podcast

I'm Erik, host of the horror movie podcast Cradle to the Grave. I've been making my way through horror movies, starting in 1971 and working my way up to modern-day. In addition to podcasting, I am an author; my first novel, Death Machine, was self-published. I am currently working... Read More →

Amanda Headlee

Amanda Headlee is the author of Till We Become Monsters, This is How a Villain is Made, Madness and Greatness Can Share the Same Face, and several short stories. A devoted connoisseur of cosmic and psychological horror, Amanda can often be found unraveling the universe’s darkest... Read More →

Lisa Morton

Co-Chair, StokerCon 2026

Author of four novels and over 200 short stories, screenwriter, Halloween and paranormal expert, past President of the Horror Writers Association, and 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award winner.

Alan Orloff

Writer. Thirteen books, 60+ short stories, most crime fiction. Won an Anthony, an Agatha, a Derringer, and two Thriller Awards. Have two horror novels coming out in 2027.

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT
Westmoreland

Horror History

5:00pm EDT

Demystifying the Stoker Awards

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT

Somerset

Moderators

Laura Blackwell

Writer, copy editor, Story Hour cohost

Laura Blackwell is a Shirley Jackson Award-winning writer of speculative fiction. Her stories have appeared in magazines and anthologies including Nightmare, PseudoPod, CatsCast, and Shirley Jackson Award-winner Aseptic and Faintly Sadistic. She is copy editor for The Deadlands... Read More →

Speakers

James Chambers

Trustee; Co-Chair, StokerCon Governing Committee; Chair, Horror University, Horror Writers Association

Alex Hofelich

co-Editor, PseudoPod

Becky Spratford

Readers' Advisory Specialist and Reviewer, RA for All

Benjamin Thomas

Writer

Multi-genre writer from New England that loves spooky things.

Thursday June 4, 2026 5:00pm - 5:50pm EDT
Somerset

HWA Spotlight

8:00pm EDT

Opening Ceremony

Thursday June 4, 2026 8:00pm - 10:00pm EDT

Allegheny Ballroom II-III

Come join the celebration of the start of StokerCon 2026! Meet our Guests of Honor, HWA officers and trustees, StokerCon Governing Board co-chairs, and friends old and new.

This event is catered with a cash bar. The bar accepts credit/debit cards, or, if you are staying at the Westin, you can charge drinks to your room. No cash accepted.

Moderators

Lisa Wood

President, Horror Writers Association

Speakers

Ann VanderMeer

editor/anthologist/writer, VanderMeer Creative, Inc.

Ann VanderMeer is an award-winning editor & anthologist. She currently serves as an acquiring editor for Reactormag.com. She was the editor-in-chief for Weird Tales, during which time she won the Hugo Award. Along with multiple other nominations, she has won a World Fantasy Award... Read More →

Linda Addison

Trustee, Horror Writers Association

Rachel Harrison

Rachel Harrison is the New York Times Bestselling author of PLAY NICE, SO THIRSTY, BLACK SHEEP, SUCH SHARP TEETH, CACKLE, and THE RETURN. Her short fiction has appeared in numerous anthologies and in her debut story collection BAD DOLLS.

Her next novel, KISS SLAY REPLAY, is out this September from Berkley in the US and Titan in the UK... Read More →

John Shirley

Decades of experience in horror, television, science fiction,thriller writing, movie scripting. Strong opinions on AI, the future of our civilization, esoteric spirituality. Weird poetry.The book I won the Bram Stoker for: Black Butterflies. My new horror novel (written with Ma... Read More →

Billy Martin

Stephen King, John Kennedy Toole, cats, birds (wild ones, not pets), New Orleans, Jaws, Goodfellas, international food, travel, old music (mainly 1960s - 1980s)

James Tynion IV

James Tynion IV is the writer of the New York Times Best-Selling BATMAN/TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES cross-over for DC Comics and IDW Publishing, as well as the bi-weekly DETECTIVE COMICS, a key title in DC Comics' Rebirth initiative.He is best known for his work on the Batman titles... Read More →

Thursday June 4, 2026 8:00pm - 10:00pm EDT
Allegheny Ballroom II-III

HWA Spotlight

10:00pm EDT

A Decade of StokerCon

Thursday June 4, 2026 10:00pm - 10:50pm EDT

Westmoreland

Join us for a special late night panel to celebrate StokerCon’s 10th anniversary!

Learn the history of the HWA’s annual conference from the people who pioneered it and carried the torch forward-a milestone assembly of con chairs from years past and present. Why did the HWA start StokerCon? What has it come to mean to the HWA and the horror community? Join in the discussion for memorable anecdotes and memories of our favorite event.

Moderators

Kevin Wetmore, Jr.

Volunteer Coordinator, HWA LA

Speakers

Lisa Morton

Co-Chair, StokerCon 2026

Author of four novels and over 200 short stories, screenwriter, Halloween and paranormal expert, past President of the Horror Writers Association, and 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award winner.

Rena Mason

Brian Matthews

Trustee; Co-Chair, StokerCon Governing Committee; Bram Stoker Awards® Show Coordinator; Pitch Session Coordinator, Horror Writers Association

Author, financial planner, former psychologist, husband, and father. Trustee for the Horror Writers Association, as well a National Co-Chair for StokerCon. I also run the Pitch Sessions and act as the Bram Stoker Awards Show Coordinator. That pretty much sums it up.

James Chambers

Trustee; Co-Chair, StokerCon Governing Committee; Chair, Horror University, Horror Writers Association

Michael Arnzen

Director, MFA in Writing Popular Fiction at SHU

Michael Arnzen holds four Bram Stoker Awards and an International Horror Guild Award for his disturbing (and often funny) fiction, poetry and literary experiments. He has been teaching as a Professor of English in the MFA program in Writing Popular Fiction at Seton Hill University sin... Read More →

Ben Rubin

Horror Studies Collection Coordinator; Co-Chair StokerCon Governing Committee, University of Pittsburgh Library System

Horror Studies Collection Coordinator for Archives & Special Collections at the University of Pittsburgh Library System - responsible for building, managing, and curating archival and rare book resources related to the horror genre and serving as subject area expert for reference... Read More →

Sara Tantlinger

Sara Tantlinger is the author of the Bram Stoker Award-winning The Devil’s Dreamland: Poetry Inspired by H.H. Holmes, as well as other works like To Be Devoured, Cradleland of Parasites, and her recent fiction collection, Cyanide Constellations. She embraces all things macab... Read More →

Dennis K. Crosby

Sarah Faxon

KC (Kristina) Grifant

Author, Editor, San Diego HWA co-chair

Logan Alexander Johnson

Logan Alexander Johnson is a writer, designer, and researcher who uses words as a vehicle for activism, inclusion, and empowerment. He brings a designer’s empathy to the page, shaped by over a decade of experience in human-centered design. Logan writes stories that highlight the... Read More →

Thursday June 4, 2026 10:00pm - 10:50pm EDT
Westmoreland

Horror History

11:00pm EDT

Monster Mash

Thursday June 4, 2026 11:00pm - 11:59pm EDT

Westmoreland

A fun, late-night programming piece, not at all a serious discussion--though it might just get intense!

Nine participants and one host. Two teams of three. Three judges. An intrepid group who will strive to answer the age old question: "Which monster would win in a fight?" In each round, each team will randomly be assigned a monster out of classic horror or folklore and a random setting will be chosen (or provided by the audience). Each team will then make their case for why their monster would defeat the other team's monster, how their powers or characteristics would match up, and how their environment might be a factor. After the cases are presented, the judges will assess the arguments and decide the winner! Tongue-in-cheek! Outlandish! Deeply meaningful! Place yer bets and let fate decide!

Moderators

James Chambers

Trustee; Co-Chair, StokerCon Governing Committee; Chair, Horror University, Horror Writers Association

Thursday June 4, 2026 11:00pm - 11:59pm EDT
Westmoreland

HWA Spotlight

7:00am EDT

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