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Saturday, June 6
 

9:00am EDT

From Grimms to Goosebumps: Horror for Young People
Saturday June 6, 2026 9:00am - 9:50am EDT
Cambria
Horror isn’t just for adults, but has long captivated young readers drawing them in with those first spine-chilling stories and keeps them coming back for more. Panelists will discuss the long history of horror stories for children, how they encourage literacy among young readers, and why kids continue to be entranced by the genre. Additional discussion will look at the struggle to ensure young horror fans continue to have access to their favorite books both in the bookstores and on library shelves.
Moderators
avatar for Melissa Bobe

Melissa Bobe

Author, Librarian
Melissa Bobe is the author of The Illustrated Woman, Season of the Witch, Sibyls, and the Millennial Witch Series, which includes Nascent Witch and its sequel Familiar Territory. Her collection Electric Trees won the 2023 New York Author Project, after which Melissa went on to win the Indie Author Project’s 2024 Indie Author of the Year Award. She has published shorter works with Flame Tree Fiction, Whisper House Press, Intrepidus Ink, Bards and Sages, Urhi Publishing, Wyldblood Pr... Read More →
Speakers
avatar for Patrick Freivald
avatar for Clare Withers

Clare Withers

Curator, Liaison Librarian, University of Pittsburgh
I'm interested in horror, the macabre, and agency in children's and YA literature.  My background is in children's literature, storytelling, and librarianship (public and academic). In my Archives & Special Collections capacity, I'm also focused on book history, curating and collaborating... Read More →
avatar for Ally Malinenko

Ally Malinenko

Ally Malinenko is the author of several poetry collections as well as Ghost Girl and the Stoker nominated This Appearing House both from Katherine Tegen Books/Harper Collins
avatar for Justina Ireland

Justina Ireland

Author and Literary Agent, Handspun Literary Agency
Justina Ireland is the New York Times bestselling author of numerous short stories and books including Vengeance Bound, Promise of Shadows, Dread Nation and its sequel Deathless Divide, Rust in the Root, and the middle-grade novel Ophie's Ghosts, which won the Scott O'Dell award... Read More →
avatar for Natalie C. Parker

Natalie C. Parker

Natalie C. Parker is the acclaimed author and editor of several books for young readers including the award-winning Seafire series and the Indie Bestselling anthology Vampires Never Get Old. Her debut horror novel, Come Out, Come Out, is a finalist for the Bram Stoker Award for S... Read More →
Saturday June 6, 2026 9:00am - 9:50am EDT
Cambria
  Horror History

10:00am EDT

Researching and Writing Horror Nonfiction
Saturday June 6, 2026 10:00am - 10:50am EDT
Cambria
This panel explores techniques and practices for researching horror, interviewing, and resources for writing about horror. Join panelists to discuss the challenges of nonfiction, how it is similar and different from writing other modes, and markets and publications in which one can place nonfiction.
Moderators
avatar for Kevin Wetmore, Jr.

Kevin Wetmore, Jr.

Volunteer Coordinator, HWA LA

Speakers
avatar for Leanna Renee Hieber

Leanna Renee Hieber

Actress, Ghost Tour Guide and Author with, Kensington, Tor and Union Square Books
An actress, playwright, ghost tour guide and award-winning, bestselling author of ghost-filled fiction and non-fiction for Kensington, Tor, Sourcebooks and Union Square, Leanna’s A Haunted History of Invisible Women: True Stories of America’s Ghosts, co-authored with Andrea J... Read More →
avatar for John Kachuba

John Kachuba

Author
Shapeshifters! Ghosts! Middle Grade horror! Author of 15 books, including the historical fantasy trilogy, “The Bottle Conjuror,” and the middle/grade novel, “Haycorn Smith and the Castle Ghost.”Several of my nonfiction books are about ghosts and the paranormal and I am a... Read More →
avatar for Kendall Phillips
NS
avatar for Becky Spratford

Becky Spratford

Readers' Advisory Specialist and Reviewer, RA for All

Saturday June 6, 2026 10:00am - 10:50am EDT
Cambria
  Business and Craft of Writing and Publishing

11:00am EDT

Fatal Foliage: Botanical and Ecological Horror
Saturday June 6, 2026 11:00am - 11:50am EDT
Cambria
Ecological horror provides an outlet for writers to express their fear and admiration of the natural world. From predatory plants and strange insects to devastating weather events and more, there is endless horror inspiration to be found in nature’s varied settings. Join panelists as they offer insight into the evolution of botanical horror as it reacts to modern-day issues.
Moderators
avatar for Carina Bissett

Carina Bissett

The Storied Imaginarium

Speakers
avatar for Sydney Bollinger
avatar for Corey Farrenkopf

Corey Farrenkopf

Staff Librarian / Writer, Eastham Public Library

avatar for Erica Ferencik

Erica Ferencik

Author

I am the author of three survival thrillers published by Simon & Schuster. I'm diving deep into horror with my upcoming novel, THE BLOOMING: In order to save her child, herself and the world as we know it, a single mother must battle a sentient fungal entity that has come to possess... Read More →
avatar for Tanya Pell

Tanya Pell

author
Tanya Pell is a narcoleptic horror author who drinks bougie coffee and lives in the American South. She is the Bram Stoker nominated-author of Her Wicked Roots, Cicada, and the upcoming This B Just Won't Die! Her short fiction can be found in Fever Dreams, Mother Knows Best, ... Read More →
avatar for Sara Tantlinger

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 →
Saturday June 6, 2026 11:00am - 11:50am EDT
Cambria
  Horror Genre and Media

12:00pm EDT

Bookhouse of Leaves: Authors and the Library
Saturday June 6, 2026 12:00pm - 12:50pm EDT
Cambria
This author facing panel will discuss the connection between those who write and those who bring books to communities. It is no surprise the books librarians champion, receive greater traction and attract more readers. Lists like the New York Public Library’s Best of Horror have significant influence in the horror world. How can authors foster professional relationships with their library and how can this help elevate their careers? Most importantly, how can authors give back to both their lore-master accomplices as well as the greater communities they serve?
Moderators
avatar for Carina Stopenski

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)
Speakers
avatar for Perla X. Caballero

Perla X. Caballero

HWA Seattle Chapter Member. Host and Curator of The Seattle Horror Book Club, Undertaker of the Morbidly Curious Book Club, West Seattle Chapter.
avatar for Jocelyn Codner

Jocelyn Codner

Reference & Outreach Librarian, Chatham University
avatar for Corey Farrenkopf

Corey Farrenkopf

Staff Librarian / Writer, Eastham Public Library

avatar for Grady Hendrix

Grady Hendrix

I own too many paperbacks and write too many books. I apologize for both of these sins.
avatar for Trevor Oakley

Trevor Oakley

Head of Access and Outreach Services, Saratoga Springs Public Library
Horror in libraries, including/featuring horror in book festivals/community reads, horror RA, horror programming
Saturday June 6, 2026 12:00pm - 12:50pm EDT
Cambria
  Business and Craft of Writing and Publishing

1:00pm EDT

The Library Eats You Last: Why (Dark) Academia Makes the Perfect Monster
Saturday June 6, 2026 1:00pm - 1:50pm EDT
Cambria
In dark academia, the institution itself is often the villain. This panel examines how schools, libraries, secret societies, and research labs become sentient forces in horror fiction--devouring students literally, or metaphorically. We’ll explore how power structures in academia map perfectly onto horror tropes, how intellectual obsession mirrors possession, and how the campus becomes a labyrinth the protagonist may never escape. This panel is perfect for fans of house-horror, cosmic dread, and the creeping suspicion that your thesis advisor might actually be an eldritch entity.
Moderators
AS
Speakers
avatar for Taylor Grothe

Taylor Grothe

Taylor Grothe (AKA T.G. Laine) is a writer of adult and young adult horror, horror romance, and dark fantasy. They hold a nonfiction MFA from Fairfield University, acted as the graduate Assistant Managing Editor of Brevity, and their short works can be found in esteemed publications... Read More →
avatar for Marc Abbott

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 →
KJ
avatar for Ai Jiang

Ai Jiang

Ai Jiang is a Chinese-Canadian writer, Ignyte, Bram Stoker, and Nebula Award winner, and Hugo, Astounding, Locus, Aurora, and BFSA Award finalist from Changle, Fujian currently residing in Toronto, Ontario. Her work can be found in F&SF, The Dark, The Masters Review, among others... Read More →
avatar for Piper White

Piper White

Author
Piper L. White is an author from North Carolina. She holds her BFA in creative writing from UNC Wilmington, where she also got her certificate in publishing. Her other work can be found in literary magazines such as Atlantis, Full House Literary, Carolina Muse Arts, amongst other... Read More →
Saturday June 6, 2026 1:00pm - 1:50pm EDT
Cambria
  Horror Genre and Media

2:00pm EDT

Horror Writing as Resistance
Saturday June 6, 2026 2:00pm - 2:50pm EDT
Cambria
Works of horror have historically brought truth to power, taking on inequality and unjust systems while also giving a good scare or two. And in recent years, readers have been offered brilliant socio-political takedowns within the genre. How are writers currently taking on fascism, isolationism, weaponized nationalism, and authoritarianism? How do we balance the social and political with the speculative and terrifying? What can readers learn from these texts? And are words enough?
Moderators
avatar for Meg Ripley

Meg Ripley

Writer of horror and dark fantasy, designer, and drawer. Her debut novel, NECROLOGY, (Book #1 of the Dirty) is a Foreword INDIES Bronze Medalist in Fantasy (2024).

Book 2 of the Dirty, WOODFEAST, due Fall 2026, Creature Publishing.
Speakers
avatar for Kylie Lee Baker
avatar for Elizabeth Broadbent

Elizabeth Broadbent

Elizabeth Broadbent (she/her) left the South Carolina swamps for the Commonwealth of Virginia, where she lives with her three sons and husband. She’s the
author of Ink Vine (Undertaker Books, 2024), Ninety-Eight Sabers (Undertaker Books, 2024), Blood Cypress (Raw Dog Screaming P... Read More →
avatar for C.S. Humble
avatar for Victoria Nations

Victoria Nations

Victoria Nations (she/her) writes Gothic and weird horror about creatures with emotional baggage. Her work is often set in Florida and other wild, liminal places.

Victoria’s work appears in Dark Matter Magazine, "Nightmarish,” "Dark Spores," and “Fish Gather to Listen," among other venues. Her poetry has been nominated for an SFPA Dwarf Stars Award and appears in Magpie Messenger, two HWA Poetry Showcases, and the Bram Stoker Award-nominated... Read More →
avatar for Tamika Thompson

Tamika Thompson

Author
Tamika is author of THE CURSE OF HESTER GARDENS (Erewhon/Kensington, 2026) and Next Generation Indie Book Awards Horror WINNER, UNSHOD, CACKLING, and NAKED (Unnerving Books), which Publishers Weekly calls “powerful,” “unsettling,” and “terrifying.” She is also the author... Read More →
Saturday June 6, 2026 2:00pm - 2:50pm EDT
Cambria
  Horror Genre and Media
  • about <br>

3:00pm EDT

Author to Editor and Back Again
Saturday June 6, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT
Cambria
Many authors dream of editing their own anthology, but what does it actually take to cross the line from author to editor? What unique challenges arise from blurring these boundaries and wearing both hats? Join panelists as they discuss navigating the potential obstacles and social barriers of being both authors and editors.
Moderators
avatar for Douglas Gwilym

Douglas Gwilym

Bram Stoker Award nominated short story author, querying novelist, editor of NOVUS MONSTRUM

Speakers
avatar for Shane Hawk

Shane Hawk

Writer-Editor, PRH-Counterpoint
Shane Hawk (Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma) is a horror writer and editor. As a contributing editor at Counterpoint Press, he exclusively works with North American Indigenous writers. In 2020, he released his debut short story collection ANOKA. Hawk is the coeditor of the... Read More →
avatar for Rebecca Rowland

Rebecca Rowland

Author, Editor
Rebecca Rowland is a Shirley Jackson and Bram Stoker Award-nominated author and editor; Cemetery Dance states that her work “reeks of The Twilight Zone in all the best ways.” Her cosmic horror novel Eminence Front (Clash Books) and third short fiction collection Unsettled Score... Read More →
avatar for Tom Deady
avatar for Geneve Flynn

Geneve Flynn

Author, editor, poet. HWA Diverse Works Inclusion Committee

avatar for Cynthia Pelayo

Cynthia Pelayo

Cynthia Pelayo is an International Latino Book Award winning poet and author.

She is the author of Loteria, Santa Muerte, The Missing, Poems of My Night, Into the Forest and All the Way Through, Children of Chicago, Crime Scene, The Shoemaker’s Magician, as well as dozens of sta... Read More →
avatar for Becky Spratford

Becky Spratford

Readers' Advisory Specialist and Reviewer, RA for All

Saturday June 6, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT
Cambria
  Business and Craft of Writing and Publishing

4:00pm EDT

The Hounds of Hell: Dogs in Horror
Saturday June 6, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Cambria
Whether a terrifying threat or man’s best friend, dogs in horror elicit strong emotions. Let’s talk about how dogs have been used in past horror works, evolving from dying early in the story, to modern evolutions of richer story arcs. This panel will celebrate some of the best loved (and terrifying) instances of dogs in horror and how these canines can be used in effective storytelling.
Moderators
avatar for Emily Smiley

Emily Smiley

Emily Smiley is a horror and dark fantasy author who encourages her readers to discover deeper truths within themselves through the exploration of fear, grief, and trauma, with a splash of dark humor and (sometimes) a little spice. She was a panelist at World Con 2025 and is slated... Read More →
Speakers
avatar for Nick Cutter

Nick Cutter

Real name: Craig Davidson. I write horror under the name Nick Cutter.
avatar for Rebekah Faubion
avatar for Jess Hagemann

Jess Hagemann

Jess Hagemann’s recent work has appeared or is forthcoming in Beneath the Bluebonnets: Tales of Terror from Texas Women, Three Seasons of Winter, and Last Girls Club, among others. Her debut novel Headcheese (2018) won an IPPY Award in Horror. Paste Magazine named her sophomor... Read More →
avatar for larry hinkle

larry hinkle

The least famous author you've never heard of, Larry Hinkle writes cosmic horror, pulp, and horror comedy, tinged with a touch of weird. His short stories made the Preliminary Stoker Awards ballot in 2020 and 2022. Books include The Space Between (collection, 2024), The Eris Ridge... Read More →
avatar for Emily Ruth Verona

Emily Ruth Verona

Author
Emily Ruth Verona is the author of the novel Midnight on Beacon Street, published by Harper Perennial in 2024 and the novella Shiva
avatar for Stephanie M. Wytovich
Saturday June 6, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Cambria
  Horror Genre and Media
  • about <br>
 

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