Finalists for the Shirley Jackson Awards, established this year to honour 'outstanding achievement in the literature of psychological suspense, horror, and the dark fantastic', have been announced. The Awards will be presented on Sunday, July 20th, 2008, at the Readercon Conference on Imaginative Literature in Burlington, Massachusetts. Here's the full list of nominees; more information can be found at the Shirley Jackson Awards website.

2007 Shirley Jackson Awards Finalists
NOVEL

* Baltimore, Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden (Bantam Spectra)
* Generation Loss, Elizabeth Hand (Small Beer Press)
* Sharp Teeth, Toby Barlow (William Heinemann Ltd)
* The Terror, Dan Simmons (... (more…)

EDITOR'S NOTE: When Fear Zone's Gaming Zone columnist, Michael Louis Calvillo, made the final ballot for a Best First Novel Bram Stoker Award for I WILL RISE, I thought it would be fun to have him report on the Stokers banquet, which was held at World Horror Con in Salt Lake City. Pictured are Michael and M.C. Strand, so named after his now legendary tarot card reading as the event's emcee.

When it comes to conventions, it's all about the parties. Never mind the panels, or workshops or dealers or pitch sessions, everyone forcing smiles and wearing their best business mask, the real convention, the one where personality eclipses etiquette, the one where alcohol is king, the humor bawdy ... (more…)

I'm going to break "the fourth wall" and speak directly to you about an event I've helped organize for next week, rather than post a press release as "Deep Throat."

The Buffalo Niagara Film Festival runs from Monday, March 24th thru Saturday, March 29th. But the only day you probably care about is the day I care about: "Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Day," which will be held at the Historic Riviera Theatre in North Tonawanda on Thursday, March 27th.

Programming begins at 11:00 AM and runs until 2:00 AM! There will be Special Guests and a small dealers' room. There's never been an actual horror film festival or horror convention in Buffalo; those of us who live here and live for ... (more…)

For the first time ever, viewers of the Bram Stoker Awards will only have themselves to blame if the dinner they consume while watching the event tastes like rubber!

The Horror Writers Association (HWA), World Horror Convention, and iSCIFI.tv announce that the 2007 Bram Stoker Awards ceremony will be broadcast live on the Internet on Saturday, March 29, 2008.

This is the first time that the Stokers have been broadcast as they happen.

The awards ceremony is being held at the 2008 World Horror Convention in Salt Lake City. Following a banquet, the awards ceremony will begin at approximately 9:00 p.m. local time (11:00 p.m. eastern time).
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To watch the awards, please click to http://... (more…)

Screenwriter Robert Craig Sabin, who starred in the 1988 cult film SLIME CITY, written and directed by Fear Zone editor Greg Lamberson, will introduce the film at World Horror Convention's First Annual Film Festival. The film unspools at 6:00 PM on Friday, March 28th and Sabin, who will conduct a Q & A after the screening, will also be on hand to promote his 5 Minute Horror webisode anthology series.

World Horror Convention 2008 runs March 27th - 30th in Salt Lake City, Utah. Special guests include Dennis Etchison, John Jude Palencar, Simon R. Green, Michael R. Collings, and three titans of horror publishing who do not use their middle initial: Mort Castle, who will conduct his annual WHC ... (more…)

SLIME CITY, written and directed by Fear Zone editor Greg Lamberson at the tender age of 21, has been selected as the Buffalo Niagara Film Festival's Midnight Movie on Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Day Thursday, March 27th. Lamberson will introduce the film with actor T.J. Merrick (pictured, in a puddle of blood), who played Robert Sabin's best friend in the film.

"Tom was sort of my college roommate at the School of Visual Arts," Lamberson says. "We had tiny, private rooms in a crappy YMCA on 34th street in Manhattan, and we shared a third room for 'studio space.' Jimmy Muro, who directed STREET TRASH, lived there too. Of course, the place is a pricey condo now. Tom actually ... (more…)

Filmmaker Tom Holland will be a Special Guest at the Buffalo Niagara Film Festival, which runs from Monday, March 24th - Sunday, March 29th. Holland, who is best known for directing the popular horror films FRIGHT NIGHT and CHILD'S PLAY (which introduced the world to the deadly doll "Chucky"), serves as an adviser to the festival and will participate in a panel discussion on Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Day, which takes place on Thursday, March 27th at the historic Riviera Theatre in North Tonawanda. He will be joined on the panel by Roy Frumkes (STREET TRASH, THE SUBSTITUTE), who is premiering the rough cut of his new DEFINITIVE DOCUMENT OF THE DEAD, and Rodrigo Gudino, publisher ... (more…)

Several Zoners/horror authors are appearing at Texas Frightmare Weekend, which actually runs longer than this weekend, in Dallas February 21st - 24th. HEY, THAT'S TOMORROW! I'm no longer excited to see the NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD gang doing their 40-year-old reunion thing, but I don't begrudge them the opportunity to make a buck. In any case, our own Gabrielle Faust is covering the event, which features:

Christopher Fullbright (Married to a Zoner!)
Angeline Hawkes (Zoner!)
Lee Thomas (Semi-Zoner!)
Steven E. Wedel (Scary picture on the guests page, Steve! DEFINITELY a Zoner!)
C. Dean Anderson
Deborah LeBlanc
Charlee Jacob

As usual, the authors are listed at the bottom of the guests' page, under ... (more…)

Rodrigo Gudino has been added to the list of guests who will appear at the Buffalo Niagara Film Festival's Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Day on Thursday, March 27th. The festival opens on Monday, March 24th and closes on Sunday, March 29th.

Gudino is best known as the publisher of Rue Morgue, the popular Toronto based magazine that explores horror entertainment and horror based culture. He has been invited to screen his new short film, THE DEMONOLOGY OF DESIRE, which has won accolades at several international film festivals, including Cannes. Fear Zone reviewed the film here. Look for an interview with Gudino soon.

Other horror filmmakers participating in the event are producer ... (more…)

EDITOR'S NOTE: We received this message from the HWA Stoker Chair this morning:

The Stoker Committee and the Stoker Jury have discussed the placement of WITCH'S TRINITY. The book is not a First Novel and was not deliberately misrepresented as such by the author. Some reviews labeled it as a 'debut,' which contributed to the misunderstanding.

After extensive discussions, we've decided that we feel sufficiently strong about the book that we would like to see it moved to the NOVEL category.
Below please find the revised 2007 Stoker Award nominee list.

Final 2007 Stoker Ballot

Superior Achievement in a Novel:

THE GUARDENER'S TALE by Bruce Boston (Sam??(TM)s Dot Publishing)
HEART-SHAPED BOX by ... (more…)