Horror Writers Association

THE HORROR WRITERS ASSOCIATION (HWA) IS A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION OF WRITERS AND PUBLISHING PROFESSIONALS AROUND THE WORLD, DEDICATED TO PROMOTING DARK LITERATURE AND THE INTERESTS OF THOSE WHO WRITE IT.HWA WAS FORMED IN THE LATE 1980S WITH THE HELP OF MANY OF THE FIELDS GREATS, INCLUDING DEAN KOONTZ, ROBERT MCCAMMON, AND JOE LANSDALE. TODAYWITH OVER 1400 MEMBERS IN COUNTRIES SUCH AS AUSTRALIA, BELGIUM, BRAZIL, CANADA, COSTA RICA, DENMARK, GERMANY, HONDURAS, INDIA, IRELAND, ISRAEL, ITALY, JAPAN, NETHERLANDS, NEW ZEALAND, NICARAGUA, RUSSIA, SPAIN, SOUTH AFRICA, SWEDEN, TAIWAN, THAILAND, TRINIDAD, UNITED KINGDOM AND THE UNITED STATESIT IS THE OLDEST AND MOST RESPECTED PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR THE MUCH-LOVED WRITERS WHO HAVE BROUGHT YOU THE MOST ENJOYABLE SLEEPLESS NIGHTS OF YOUR LIFE.

OUR MISSION - IS TO ENCOURAGE PUBLIC INTEREST IN AND FOSTER AN APPRECIATION OF GOOD HORROR AND DARK FANTASY LITERATURE. TO THAT END, WE OFFER THE PUBLIC AREAS OF THIS WEB SITE, WE SPONSOR OR TAKE PART IN OCCASIONAL PUBLIC READINGS AND LECTURES, WE PUBLISH A BLOG AND PRODUCE OTHER MATERIALS FOR BOOKSELLERS AND LIBRARIANS, WE FACILITATE READINGS AND SIGNINGS BY HORROR WRITERS, AND WE MAINTAIN AN OFFICIAL PRESENCE AT THE MAJOR FAN-BASED HORROR AND FANTASY CONVENTIONS, SUCH AS THE WORLD FANTASY CONVENTION. WE ALSO ORGANIZE OUR OWN ANNUAL CONVENTION: STOKERCON.DIVERSITY - TO ENSURE THE HORROR WRITERS ASSOCIATION (HWA) INCLUDES THE WIDEST POSSIBLE REPRESENTATION OF THOSE WORKING IN THE HORROR/DARK FANTASY GENRE, THE HWA HAS FORMED THE DIVERSE WORKS INCLUSION COMMITTEE. THIS COMMITTEE IS TASKED WITH ACTIVELY SEEKING WRITERS AND EDITORS WITH DIVERSE BACKGROUNDS. THE COMMITTEE HAS ADOPTED THE BROADEST DEFINITION OF THE WORD DIVERSITY TO INCLUDE GENDER, GENDER IDENTITY, RACE, ETHNICITY, AND SEXUAL ORIENTATION.

STOKERCON - AS PART OF OUR CORE MISSION, HWA SPONSORS A CONVENTION CELEBRATING HORROR WRITING. STOKERCON PROGRAMMING INCLUDES THE ANNUAL BRAM STOKER AWARDS FOR SUPERIOR ACHIEVEMENT IN HORROR LITERATURE. NAMED IN HONOR OF THE AUTHOR OF THE SEMINAL HORROR NOVEL DRACULA, THE BRAM STOKER AWARDS ARE PRESENTED FOR SUPERIOR WRITING IN ELEVEN CATEGORIES INCLUDING TRADITIONAL FICTION OF VARIOUS LENGTHS, POETRY, SCREENWRITING, GRAPHIC NOVELS, YOUNG ADULT, AND NON-FICTION. IN ADDITION, HWA PRESENTS AN ANNUAL LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD TO A LIVING PERSON WHO HAS MADE SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE WRITING OF HORROR AND DARK FANTASY OVER THE COURSE OF A LIFETIME.

HORROR UNIVERSITY IS ONE OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL AND POPULAR ASPECTS OF STOKERCON. WE ARE PROUD TO NOW OFFER HORROR UNIVERSITY ONLINE FOR ANYONE WHO WISHES TO ATTEND. HORROR UNIVERSITY FURTHERS THE HORROR WRITERS ASSOCIATIONS FOCUS ON EDUCATION WITH A CURRICULUM RUN BY SOME OF THE BEST AND BRIGHTEST IN THE HORROR FIELD.HORROR UNIVERSITY ONLINE OFFERS A SERIES OF 90-MINUTE TO TWO-HOUR WORKSHOPS. THEY ARE NOT YOUR TYPICAL WORKSHOP EXPERIENCESTHEY ARE HANDS-ON, INTENSIVE CLASSES THAT INCLUDE INTERACTIVE ACTIVITIES AND EXERCISES. WORKSHOPS WILL INITIALLY BE LIVE EVENTS, BUT MANY WILL BE OFFERED AS RECORDINGS YEAR-ROUND FOR STUDENTS WHO REGISTER AFTER THE LIVE SESSION.