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Saturday, June 6
 

9:00am EDT

HWA Open Member Board Meeting
Saturday June 6, 2026 9:00am - 9:50am EDT
Somerset
Annual HWA Board Meeting open to the public. Come meet members of the Executive Board and the Board of Trustees. There will be a Q&A section during the meeting.
Moderators
avatar for Becky Spratford

Becky Spratford

Readers' Advisory Specialist and Reviewer, RA for All

Speakers
avatar for Andrew Wolter

Andrew Wolter

Author/Columnist/HWA Trustee

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 →
avatar for Linda Addison

Linda Addison

Trustee, Horror Writers Association

avatar for Patrick Barb

Patrick Barb

Author & HWA Treasurer
Patrick Barb is the Bram Stoker Award-nominated author of weird, dark, and horrifying tales, currently living in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. His published works include the short-story collections The Children's Horror and Pre-Approved for Haunting; novellas The Big One, The Nu... Read More →
avatar for James Chambers

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 →
avatar for Ellen Datlow

Ellen Datlow

Trustee, Editor of short fiction through novellas
Ellen Datlow has been editing sf/f/h, short fiction for more than forty years. She currently acquires short fiction and novellas for Tor.com. She’s edited more than one hundred anthologies, including the annual The Best Horror of the Year series and has won multiple awards for her work. Her most recent original anthology is Night and Day published by Saga Press. She has won the Karl Edward Wagner (special) award given by the British Fantasy Convention, and Life Achievement Awards given by the Horror Writers Association... Read More →
avatar for Sephera Giron

Sephera Giron

Writer/screenwriter/trustee
MI

Maxwell Ian Gold

Executive Director, Horror Writers Association

avatar for Lisa Kröger

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.
avatar for Brian Matthews

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.
avatar for Lisa Wood

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 →
Saturday June 6, 2026 9:00am - 9:50am EDT
Somerset
  HWA Spotlight

10:00am EDT

The Legacy of Dell Abyss
Saturday June 6, 2026 10:00am - 10:50am EDT
Somerset
The acclaimed Abyss Books line of the early-mid 1990s brought underground experimentalism and literary existentialism into mass market horror, generating a half-decade of award-winning books and influential stories. The publisher launched the careers of writers like Poppy Z. Brite, Kathe Koja, and Robert Devereaux, while expanding the canon of the genre by featuring women and LGBTQ authors, as well as other writers working from the fringes. This panel will mark the 35th anniversary of the imprint by reflecting on the line's history and impact and how it fit in with the broader mass market horror trends of the 1990s.
Moderators
avatar for Grady Hendrix

Grady Hendrix

I own too many paperbacks and write too many books. I apologize for both of these sins.
Speakers
avatar for Michael Arnzen

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 →
avatar for Billy Martin

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)
avatar for Ben Rubin

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 →
Saturday June 6, 2026 10:00am - 10:50am EDT
Somerset
  Horror History

11:00am EDT

The Black Gothic in America
Saturday June 6, 2026 11:00am - 11:50am EDT
Somerset
With an eye towards the gothic as a literary genre, “The Black Gothic in America” will explore recent growth in popularity and readership for gothic works written by Black authors, particularly of the Black Southern gothic in the vein of Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, which smashed 2025 box office records. This panel will discuss both classic and contemporary Black gothic works, their importance in shaping the genre, and more.
Moderators
avatar for Rhonda Jackson Garcia AKA RJ Joseph

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 →
Speakers
avatar for Nicole Givens Kurtz

Nicole Givens Kurtz

Author, Award-winning publisher, Mocha Memoirs Press
Nicole Givens Kurtz has been called “a genre polymath who does crime, horror, and science fiction and fantasy (Book Riot).” They’ve named her as one of the 6 Black SFF Indie Writers You Should be Reading, 30 Must-Read SFF Books by Black Authors, and The Best of the West: 8 Alternative... Read More →
avatar for Denise Tapscott

Denise Tapscott

Enchanted Flower Productions
I'm the author of Gypsy Kisses and Voodoo Wishes as well as the sequel, Enlightening of the Damned. Not only do I play a spicy vampire named Tasha on the YouTube show The Vamps Next Door, I am proud to be a member of the podcast Beef, Wine, and Shenanigans
avatar for Johnny Compton
avatar for Steven Van Patten

Steven Van Patten

Writer/ Producer/ Stage Manager, Laughing Black Vampire Productions
Brooklyn native Steven Van Patten is the author of the critically acclaimed Brookwater’s Curse trilogy that features an 1860s Georgia plantation slave who becomes law enforcement within the vampire community. In contrast, the titular character in his Killer Genius series is a m... 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 11:00am - 11:50am EDT
Somerset
  Horror Genre and Media
  • about <br>

12:00pm EDT

The Roots of Dark Poetry
Saturday June 6, 2026 12:00pm - 12:50pm EDT
Somerset
This panel will explore the history of dark poetry and pay homage to the macabre voices who conjured and wrote some of our favorite verses today. From the political turmoil of Dante Alighieri to the mystical visions of W.B. Yeats, to the confessional trauma of Sylvia Plath and the surreal nightmares of Alejandra Pizarnik, panelists will discuss theme, style, and voice while comparing/contrasting them against their contemporaries to see what horrors still plague us and what new terrors are beginning to rear their heads.
Moderators
avatar for Stephanie M. Wytovich
Speakers
avatar for Grace R. Reynolds

Grace R. Reynolds

Author
GRACE R. REYNOLDS is an American speculative fiction writer. She was raised in New Jersey and graduated from Rutgers University. Having lived in seven states, she currently calls Maryland “home,” where she writes dark fiction and poetry. In addition to her short fiction, she is... Read More →
avatar for Linda Addison

Linda Addison

Trustee, Horror Writers Association

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 Leticia A Urieta

Leticia A Urieta


Leticia Urieta (she/her/hers) is a Tejana writer from Austin, TX. She works as a teaching artist and freelance writer and editor. She is the author of Las Criaturas, published in 2021 by Flowersong Press and was a finalist for the Sergio Troncoso Award for Best First Book of Fic... Read More →
avatar for John Shirley

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 →
Saturday June 6, 2026 12:00pm - 12:50pm EDT
Somerset
  Horror History

1:00pm EDT

Mary Shelley's Monster: the Legacy of Frankenstein
Saturday June 6, 2026 1:00pm - 1:50pm EDT
Somerset
When Mary Shelley published Frankenstein in 1818, she unleashed a monster onto the world that is still making its mark. The first dramatic adaptation of Frankenstein was staged only six years later in 1824. Today, with hundreds of adaptations in film, graphic novels, music, and the stage, plus many novels and short stories adding to the Monster’s legend, the story remains one of the most fascinating creations in all of dark literature. This panel will discuss what makes the Monster so enduring and compelling, the best and worst offspring of the novel, and why the ideas and themes remain relevant today.
Moderators
avatar for Crystal O’Leary-Davidson (C. O. Davidson)
Speakers
avatar for Lawrence C. Connolly

Lawrence C. Connolly

Writer
Lawrence C. Connolly’s books include the collections This Way to Egress, whose titular tale of psychological horror was adapted for the Mick Garris film Nightmare Cinema; and the Bram-Stoker-nominated Voices, which features Connolly’s best stories from The Magazine of Fantasy... Read More →
avatar for Teel James Glenn

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 →
avatar for Gwendolyn Kiste
avatar for Lisa Kröger

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.
avatar for John Langan

John Langan

Author, THE FISHERMAN
John Langan is the author of two novels and five collections of stories.  For his fiction, he has received the Bram Stoker and the This Is Horror awards.  With Paul Tremblay, he co-edited Creatures: Thirty Years of Monsters (2011).  He is one of the founders of the Shirley Jac... Read More →
Saturday June 6, 2026 1:00pm - 1:50pm EDT
Somerset
  Horror History

2:00pm EDT

We are all Sinners: Southern Horror from the Mississippi Delta and Beyond
Saturday June 6, 2026 2:00pm - 2:50pm EDT
Somerset
Using Ryan Coogler’s Oscar-winning film SINNERS as a spring board, this panel will explore themes of race, poverty, and religion. Moderated by a Delta native of mixed heritage who grew up four counties above the setting of the film, and featuring authors forged by the South and its landscapes, together they will explore the universal truths of a “post-colonial” society within stories entirely unique to the Deep South. We gather here for the ancestors.
Moderators
avatar for Mae Murray
Speakers
avatar for Rhonda Jackson Garcia AKA RJ Joseph

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 →
avatar for Johnny Compton
avatar for P.M. Raymond

P.M. Raymond

Author
P.M. Raymond is a principal consultant on the East Coast with 27 cookbooks and an imaginary dog named Walter. As a native of New Orleans, mystical undertones are the roux in her crime and horror writing. She was named to the 160 Black Women in Horror and is a 2024 Killer Shorts Horror... Read More →
Saturday June 6, 2026 2:00pm - 2:50pm EDT
Somerset
  Horror History

3:00pm EDT

Nonbinary Authors in Horror
Saturday June 6, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT
Somerset
Nonbinary identities have a nuanced and complex history, especially within the world of horror where characters who don't fit into the binary are often mistreated. It's important to make space for an often marginalized and looked over corner of horror, and to discuss why nonbinary characters belong in horror. After all, horror is the best space to push boundaries and definitions. Join panelists as they discuss if/how gender roles play into their work, themes they like to explore within horror, how nonbinary characters in horror can engage readers in unique ways, and more.
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 Eric LaRocca

Eric LaRocca

Eric LaRocca (he/they) is a 3x Bram Stoker Award® finalist and Splatterpunk Award winner. He was named by Esquire as one of the “Writers Shaping Horror’s Next Golden Age” and praised by Locus as “one of the strongest and most unique voices in contemporary horror fict... Read More →
avatar for Jes Malitoris

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 →
avatar for Rook Riley

Rook Riley

Rook Riley (she/they) is a horror author, game writer, voice actor, middle school teacher, and former Army linguist who occasionally participates in the Good Morning Evildoers podcast. Their work on Edge Games' Arkham Horror RPG solidified a lifelong aversion to Lovecraft's part... Read More →
avatar for Saratoga Schaefer

Saratoga Schaefer

author of SERIAL KILLER SUPPORT GROUP and TRAD WIFE
(they/them) author of SERIAL KILLER SUPPORT GROUP and TRAD WIFE, as well as the upcoming THE LAST TIME WE DROWNED and A THOUSAND MONSTROUS FORMS.
Saturday June 6, 2026 3:00pm - 3:50pm EDT
Somerset
  Horror Genre and Media

4:00pm EDT

Why Graphic Horror Matters: Horror Comics from E.C. Comics to Something is Killing the Children
Saturday June 6, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Somerset
No other mainstream genre of comic books has been as widely banned and panned than horror comics during the 100+ year history of the medium. From the infamous pre-code horror comics that led to a shocking incident of industry self-censorship to the boundary-pushing horror magazines of the 70s and 80s to to contemporary horror series that make horror one of the most popular comic book genres today, our panelists will discuss the history of sequential art scares and why these comics matter, from E.C. Comics to Something Is Killing the Children and beyond. Why do horror comics invite so much controversy and why do they persist in popularity against all odds?
Moderators
avatar for Scott Edelman

Scott Edelman

Author
SCOTT EDELMAN has published 135+ short stories in magazines such as Lightspeed, Analog, Apex, and The Twilight Zone, and in anthologies such as Why New Yorkers Smoke, Crossroads: Southern Tales of the Fantastic, and MetaHorror. He began his professional writing career in the comics... Read More →
Speakers
avatar for Christopher Golden

Christopher Golden

CHRISTOPHER GOLDEN is the New York Times bestselling author of the novels Carry Me to My Grave, The House of Last Resort, All Hallows, Road of Bones, and Ararat, among many others. He has also written and cowritten screenplays, comic books, and audio dramas. His work has won the Bram Stoker Award, the Shirley Jackson Award, and the Audie Award, and been nominated for the British Fantasy and Eisner Awards, among others... Read More →
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 Jonathan Maberry

Jonathan Maberry

Author, Jonathan Maberry Productions
JONATHAN MABERRY is a NYTimes bestselling author, 5-time Bram Stoker Award-winner, 4-time Scribe Award winner, Inkpot Award winner, poet, and comic book writer. He writes in multiple genres including suspense, thriller, horror, science fiction, fantasy, and action, for adults, teens... Read More →
avatar for James Tynion IV

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 →
Saturday June 6, 2026 4:00pm - 4:50pm EDT
Somerset
  Horror History
 

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