THE LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
The HWA is proud to announce our Lifetime Achievement Award winners: Jo Fletcher, Nancy Holder, and Koji Suzuki. Their awards will be given at this year’s StokerCon, happening in Denver, Colorado in May.
The Lifetime Achievement Award is presented periodically to an individual whose work has substantially influenced the horror genre. While this award is often presented to a writer, it may also be given for influential accomplishments in other creative fields.
The Lifetime Achievement Award is the most prestigious of all awards presented by HWA. It does not merely honor the superior achievement embodied in a single work. Instead, it is an acknowledgement of superior achievement in an entire career.
Congratulations to this year’s recipients!
NEW GAMEPLAY VIDEOS REVEALED FOR ‘EVIL DEAD: THE GAME’
Get your bookstick ready because Evil Dead: The Game is drawing closer!
This week the team at Game Informer revealed two gameplay videos, Survivor and Demon, for the highly anticipated survival horror game.
Each video highlights the challenges of winning the match and shows players what to expect depending on which side they want to play. Each character has their own skillset and brings a different role to each game.
Fans will also be happy to know that each player has their own execution/finishing moves that they can use to absolutely annihilate their enemy.
Evil Dead: The Game allows players use characters from the series such as Ash Williams, Scotty, Lord Arthur, Kelly and Pablo. Or, if the player chooses, they can take control of the evil characters that the series has to offer including the Kandarian Demon and multiple Deadites.
The game will launch on May 13 for PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch and PC. Have a look at the videos below and stay tuned to Horror News Network for more on Evil Dead: The Game.
Go HERE to see the trailer narrated by Bruce Campbell.
Nosferatu at 100: how the seminal vampire film shaped the horror genre
From The Conversation
It’s the centenary of the cinema premiere of the German horror film Nosferatu. Now recognised as a classic of the silent era and one of the first examples of cinematic horror, it used elements of Gothic style to present a dark dreamworld. Ripe with undertones that link it not only to contemporary troubles, it also offers prescient warnings of horrors to come with the rise of Hitler’s Nazi regime.
The film is now considered one of the key films of German expressionism, a film movement from the 1920s that rejected realism in favour of creating imaginary worlds where stylised and distorted set design expressed psychological states of fear and despair.
Such tortured creation can be linked to external factors, with these films coming out of a Germany still reeling from its defeat in the first world war, plunging the country into a time of turmoil with rising inflation and political unrest. Added to this was the devastation caused by the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918-20, which killed more people than the war.
The film remains a sensation of the horror genre and 100 years since its release it’s influence can still be seen within cinema today.
A complicated legacy
At the centre of the film is the vampire, Count Orlok. Orlok is unlike the dashing caped figures of Bela Lugosi in the 1931 Dracula and Christopher Lee in the series of Dracula films made at Britain’s Hammer Studios.
Actor Max Schreck’s Orlok is strikingly inhuman and repulsive. With his bald head, hooked nose, clawed fingers and pointed ears. He is often surrounded by swarms of rats rather than harems of women. This representation has been compared to hateful anti-Semitic images used in Nazi propaganda. It is unlikely that this was intentional as many of the writers and actors were Jewish. However, the notion of an invading “threat” coming to take over the land and comparisons between Jewish people and vampires were narratives that were used to justify state-sanctioned persecution and murder.
However, a narrative that is inherent in the story of Nosferatu and other expressionist films is the threat of authoritarian and aristocratic figures seeking to take control. The films made in this period foreshadowed a future full of death and terror, tyranny and murder.
In his 1947 history of German expressionism, From Caligari to Hitler, the critic Siegfried Kracauer argued that the genre reflects and documents the subconscious of the German people’s fixation with tyranny that would climax in the rise of the Nazi.
In Nosferatu, this plays out in the aristocratic figure of Orlok who exerts his supernatural influence over unsuspecting people, sucking their lifeblood, choosing who dies and who becomes part of his cabal of hateful monsters who enact his will. For Kracauer, the figure of Count Orlock represented the combination of fear and fascination that the spectre of fascism elicited in the German people.
Immortal and influential
While it is not the first vampire film, or even the first adaptation of Stoker’s novel (the now-lost Hungarian film Dracula’s Death was made a year prior), it established many stylistic and narrative tropes of the vampire story still used today. For instance, Nosferatu was the first time a vampire was killed by sunlight, a trope that has now become canon.
It also was the first German expressionist film to shoot on location, instead of entirely on studio sets – like the genre’s first film The Cabinet of Dr Caligari. For Nosferatu, director F.W. Murnau created a Gothic atmosphere in locations such as Orava Castle and the High Tatras mountain range in Slovakia. Such locations allowed audiences to see and sense the history of crumbling ruins and feel the elemental forces present in dark forests and raging storms.
The making of Nosferatu and its cast and crew have been subject to their own mythologising. The 2000 film Shadow of the Vampire posits that Max Schreck really was a vampire, entering into a Faustian pact with director F. W. Murnau to give his film the ultimate authenticity – in exchange for the blood of the film’s leading lady.
The TV series American Horror Story: Hotel has Murnau himself becoming a vampire while researching Nosferatu in the Carpathian Mountains. Once in Hollywood, Murnau turns an actor into a vampire, the immortality of the vampire likened to the immortality of film stardom.
Nosferatu’s blending of genre tropes and arthouse style even foretells the current rise of “elevated horror”, personified by films such as Get Out, The Babadook and Hereditary. In fact, one of horror’s newest auteurs, Robert Eggers (whose film The Lighthouse owes much to German expressionism), has hinted at a remake of Nosferatu (the second remake after Werner Herzog’s 1979 Nosferatu the Vampyre).
So, after 100 years, our fascination with Count Orlok lives on.
To learn more, go HERE
THE HORROR ZINE IS NOW PUBLISHING BOOK REVIEWS
The Horror Zine used to publish indie book reviews, but stopped because an overwhelming amount of review requests came to us and we could not keep up with them all.
Now we are welcoming review requests once again, but this time on a limited basis. So then, how will this new review process work?
First, we are removing all previous book reviews from our Review Page HERE. But if you had a book review on that page, don't despair, because we are not removing your review from the internet. All your links to your past reviews should still work. We are only removing your review from our page, but your reviews are still available on the internet.
Next, The Horror Zine is pleased to announce three new staff members whose jobs are to review books. We are pleased to include Heather Miller, John M. Cozzoli, and Rick R. Reed to our staff, exclusively to read and review YOUR indie books.
There will be no direct contact with these three staff members by you. Instead, you will email thehorrorzine@gmail.com. We will then forward your review requests to all three reviewers. If one accepts your book for review, then it will appear on the Review Page. If none accepts your book for review, you will be notified that your request for review with The Horror Zine is not going forward.
In your email for your review request, you must include the following: a jpeg photo of the book cover; a one-paragraph synopsis of the plot; your bio; and a link to where it can be found on amazon. Please do not simply email a mobi file, because it is up to the Book Reviewers as to in which format they will want to read your book: either paperback, kindle, or mobi.
You must be willing to mail either a paperback copy or provide a kindle copy to the reviewer, depending upon their preferences.
We hope the best for you and your book.
NEW ANTHOLGY FROM THE HORROR ZINE AND HELLBOUND BOOKS:
THE HORROR ZINE'S BOOK OF WEREWOLF STORIES
Although werewolves are a classic monster standard, The Horror Zine’s Book of Werewolf Stories breathes fresh, terrifying life into the horrifying concept of human-to-wolf transformations.
The Horror Zine’s Book of Werewolf Stories is packed with original, never-before published stories of unique and contemporary takes on lycanthropy.
No Lon Chaney Jr. remakes here; instead, this spine-chilling anthology presents exciting, refreshing new ideas that won’t fail to impress even the most jaded horror readers.
Brought to you by the established, award-winning ezine and print magazine, only the best and most suspenseful tales can be found stalking the pages of The Horror Zine’s Book of Werewolf Stories.
Includes an introduction by Stephen Graham Jones, a foreword by WD Gagliani, and spine-chilling tales of lycanthropy from Ramsey Campbell, JG Faherty, Susie Moloney, Nancy Kilpatrick, and myriad other noteworthy authors.
Only $4.99 for kindle and $14.99 for paperback HERE
The 2021 Bram Stoker Awards® Final Ballot
Superior Achievement in a Novel
Castro, V. - The Queen of the Cicadas (Flame Tree Press)
Hendrix, Grady - The Final Girl Support Group (Berkley)
Jones, Stephen Graham - My Heart is a Chainsaw (Gallery/Saga Press)
Pelayo, Cynthia - Children of Chicago (Agora Books)
Wendig, Chuck - The Book of Accidents (Del Rey)
Superior Achievement in a First Novel*
Martinez, S. Alessandro - Helminth (Omnium Gatherum)
McQueen, LaTanya - When the Reckoning Comes (Harper Perennial)
Miles, Terry - Rabbits (Del Rey)
Piper, Hailey - Queen of Teeth (Strangehouse Books)
Quigley, Lisa - The Forest (Perpetual Motion Machine Publishing)
Willson, Nicole - Tidepool (The Parliament House)
*Due to a tie in fifth place, there are six nominees in this category.
Superior Achievement in a Graphic Novel
Ahmed, Saladin (author) and Kivelä, Sami (artist) - Abbott 1973 (BOOM! Studios)
Garcia, Kami (author); Suayan, Mico (artist); Badower, Jason (artist); and Mayhew, Mike (artist) - Joker/Harley: Criminal Sanity (DC Comics)
Manzetti, Alessandro (author) and Cardoselli, Stefano (artist) - The Inhabitant of the Lake (Independent Legions Publishing)
Morrison, Grant (author); Child, Alex (author); and Franquiz, Naomi (artist) - Proctor Valley Road (BOOM! Studios)
Panosian, Dan (author) and Ignazzi, Marianna (artist) - An Unkindness of Ravens (BOOM! Studios)
Superior Achievement in a Young Adult Novel
Blake, Kendare - All These Bodies (Quill Tree Books)
Boyle, R.L. - The Book of the Baku (Titan Books )
Lewis, Jessica - Bad Witch Burning (Delacorte Press)
Sutherland, Krystal - House of Hollow (G.P. Putnam's Sons)
Waters, Erica - The River Has Teeth (HarperTeen)
Superior Achievement in Long Fiction
Castro, V. - Goddess of Filth (Creature Publishing, LLC)
Khaw, Cassandra - Nothing But Blackened Teeth (Tor Nightfire)
LaRocca, Eric - Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke (Weirdpunk Books)
Piper, Hailey - “Recitation of the First Feeding” (Unfortunate Elements of My Anatomy) (The Seventh Terrace)
Strand, Jeff - “Twentieth Anniversary Screening” (Slice and Dice) (Independently published)
Superior Achievement in Short Fiction
Gyzander, Carol - “The Yellow Crown” (Under Twin Suns: Alternate Histories of the Yellow Sign) (Hippocampus Press)
Murray, Lee - “Permanent Damage” (Attack From the ‘80s) (Raw Dog Screaming Press)
O’Quinn, Cindy - “A Gathering at the Mountain” (The Bad Book) (Bleeding Edge Books)
Taborska, Anna -“Two Shakes Of A Dead Lamb's Tail”(Terror Tales of the Scottish Lowlands) (Telos Publishing)
Ward, Kyla Lee - “A Whisper in the Death Pit” (Weirdbook #44) (Wildside Press)
Superior Achievement in a Fiction Collection
Files, Gemma - In That Endlessness, Our End (Grimscribe Press)
Fracassi, Philip - Beneath a Pale Sky (Lethe Press)
Maberry, Jonathan - Empty Graves: Tales of the Living Dead (WordFire Press LLC)
Tuttle, Lisa - The Dead Hours of Night (Valancourt Books)
Wise, A.C. - The Ghost Sequences (Undertow Publications)
Superior Achievement in a Screenplay
Chaisson, C. Henry; Antosca, Nick; and Cooper, Scott - Antlers (Searchlight Pictures)
Dong-hyuk, Hwang - Squid Game, Season 1, Episode 1: "Red Light, Green Light" (Siren Pictures)
Flanagan, Mike; Flanagan, James; and Howard, Jeff - Midnight Mass, Season 1, Episode 6: "Book VI: Acts of the Apostles" (Intrepid Pictures)
Graziadei, Phil and Janiak, Leigh - Fear Street: Part One - 1994 (Chernin Entertainment)
Peele, Jordan; Rosenfeld, Win; and DaCosta, Nia - Candyman (Universal Pictures)
Superior Achievement in a Poetry Collection
Lansdale, Joe R. - Apache Witch and Other Poetic Observations (Independent Legions Publishing)
McHugh, Jessica - Strange Nests (Apokrupha)
Simon, Marge and Turzillo, Mary - Victims (Weasel Press)
Sng, Christina; Yuriko Smith, Angela; Murray, Lee; and Flynn, Geneve - Tortured Willows: Bent. Bowed. Unbroken. (Yuriko Publishing)
Snyder, Lucy A. - Exposed Nerves (Raw Dog Screaming Press)
Superior Achievement in an Anthology
Chambers, James - Under Twin Suns: Alternate Histories of the Yellow Sign (Hippocampus Press)
Datlow, Ellen - When Things Get Dark: Stories Inspired by Shirley Jackson (Titan Books)
French, Aaron J. and Landry, Jess - There is No Death, There are No Dead (Crystal Lake Publishing)
Guignard, Eric J. - Professor Charlatan Bardot's Travel Anthology to the Most (Fictional) Haunted Buildings in the Weird, Wild World (Dark Moon Books)
Johnson, Eugene - Attack From the 80’s (Raw Dog Screaming Press)
Superior Achievement in Non-Fiction
Knost, Michael - Writers Workshop of Horror 2 (Hydra Publications)
Olson, Danel - 9/11 Gothic: Decrypting Ghosts and Trauma in New York City’s Terrorism Novels (Lexington Books)
Weinstock, Jeffrey Andrew and Hansen, Regina M. - Giving the Devil His Due: Satan and
Cinema (Fordham University Press)
Wetmore Jr., Kevin J. - Eaters of the Dead: Myths and Realities of Cannibal Monsters (Reaktion Books)
Woofter, Kristopher - Shirley Jackson: A Companion (Peter Lang Publishing)
Superior Achievement in Short Non-Fiction
Ognjanović, Dejan - “The Three Paradigms of Horror” (Vastarien Vol. 4, Issue 2) (Grimscribe Press)
O’Quinn, Cindy - “One and Done” (Were Tales: A Shapeshifter Anthology) (Brigids Gate Press)
Verona, Emily Ruth - “A Horror Fan's Guide to Surviving Womanhood” (The Final Girls)
Wetmore Jr., Kevin J. - “Devil's Advocates: The Conjuring” (Auteur Publishing/Liverpool University Press)
Yuriko Smith, Angela - “Horror Writers: Architects of Hope” (The Sirens Call, Halloween 2021, Issue 55) (Sirens Call Publications)
May 14: The 2021 Bram Stoker Awards® announced during the Annual Bram Stoker Awards Banquet held during StokerCon™ 2022 in Denver, Colorado.
The 10 Best Horror Movies For A 3AM Screening, According To Reddit
Nothing good happens after 3AM, does it?
by Josh Korngut
Midnight Madness is more than just a concept, it’s a way of life. The Midnight Madness showcase at the Toronto International Film Festival, in particular, is an infamous breeding ground for some of horror’s most notorious titles. Many other film festivals (like Sundance) have their own middle of the night sections, dedicated to screening the genre’s wildest and most exciting programming. Now Reddit is getting in on the fun. Users over at the internet’s front page are voting on what scary titles are best suited for a 3AM screening slot.
To get more specific, Reddit user ChicagoBurdman asks: if you were responsible to program a 3AM slot with a horror film, what you include? It’s a great question. 3 AM, also known as the devils hour, is truly the most ungodly hour. And therefore, possibly the most perfect time to be showcasing outrageous
I’ve gone through the votes and assembled Reddit’s answers in order of upvoting. Check out the list right here:
- Dead Alive – 200 Upvotes
- The Return Of The Living Dead – 117 Upvotes
- Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight – 117 Upvotes
- Demons – 62 Upvotes
- Midnight Meat Train – 42 Upvotes
- The Exorcism of Emily Rose – 37 Upvotes
- Ichi The Killer – 34 Upvotes
- Reanimator – 32 Upvotes
- Hausu – 31 Upvotes
- Society – 24 Upvotes
Personally, I’d love to stay up all night to watch The Return of the Living Dead. That film’s combination of fun, scary, and outrageousness is the perfect cocktail for a 3AM fever dream showcase.
See more HERE
Did you know that BloodyDisgusting has a horror forum? Post your thoughts about horror HERE
Take the Plague Quiz HERE
Would you survive the bubonic plague? Find out HERE
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