Born in the Year of the Dragon, Vonnie Winslow Crist is author of award-winning short stories, poems, and books. An active member of the Horror Writers Association, Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association, Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators, and National League of American Pen Women - she taught creative writing for the Maryland State Arts Council for 10 years.

"Shivers, Scares, and Goosebumps" won a 2023 Imadjinn Award. "Beneath Raven's Wing" won a 2022 International Edgar Allan Poe Festival Saturday Visiter Award and was an Imadjinn Award Finalist. "The Enchanted Dagger" won a Maryland Writers Association Book Award and was a Compton Crook Award Finalist. Both "Owl Light" and "The Greener Forest" won eFestival of Words Short Story Collection Awards (2017 & 2018).

Her speculative writing appears in hundreds of books and magazines including "Asimov's Magazine," "Amazing Stories," "Chilling Ghost Short Stories," "Slay: Stories of the Vampire Noir," "Faerie Magazine," "Weirdbook: Witches," "Black Infinity," "Cirsova," and "Cast of Wonders."

As an illustrator, she's had over 1,000 illustrations published in books, magazines, and calendars.

She is an avid JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis fan, and a firm believer in the magical world that surrounds us! A clover-hand who has found so many 4-leafed clovers she keeps them in jars, Vonnie is quite fond of Harry Potter & Hogwarts, The Hunger Games, A Song of Ice & Fire, Star Wars, Star Trek, and everything Faerie!

Christine (C.A.) Verstraete is an award-winning author and journalist from Wisconsin who loves writing everything from the odd, to the macabre and stories with touches of humor.

Two more new stories: "Blink!" in Behind the Shadows II; "Secrets of the Last Mine" in Noncorporeal II.

My latest story, "Wildfire," was inspired by that haunting song of the same name for the anthology, (i jUST) DIED IN YOUR ARMS: CRIME FICTION INSPIRE BY ONE-HIT WONDERS (from Misti Media LLC). Pre-order. Releases Jan. 9.

Other recent stories include: "Sweet Dreams," in The Colored Lens and recorded for the 31 Days of Halloween at Creepy Podcast; plus, "The Ghosts of Paris" in Night Terrors Vol.26 from Scare Street.

The latest: A new zombie tale, "Of Life, Death and the Krieg" is in the new anthology, RUN FROM THE DEAD.

BOOKS: LIZZIE BORDEN, ZOMBIE HUNTER 2: The Axe Will Fall!!! - Lizzie is back, swinging her axe again! Sequel to LIZZIE BORDEN, ZOMBIE HUNTER!

* COMPANION NOVELLA: * Was Lizzie Borden's doctor haunted by what he saw that day - and by Fall River? THE HAUNTING OF DR. BOWEN, A Mystery in Lizzie Borden's Fall River

* My story, "Thirteen Horses" is in the anthology, Descent Into Darkness. (#1 Bestseller!)

** Check my website under my name cverstraete and my GirlZombieAuthors blog. Or see my minis blog, Candid Canine (at Blogger. - CandidcanineDOTblogspotDOTcom

When she's not writing (when is that?), Christine also enjoys creating in miniature. Coming Soon: IN MINIATURE STYLE: HALLOWEEN, ebook and print. Other books: DOLLHOUSE DECOR & MORE, Vol. 1 with Joanna Campbell Slan and IN MINIATURE STYLE II. (MSII will be re-published and updated later.)

Stuart Conover is a father, husband, rescue dog lover, blogger, published author, geek, entrepreneur, and horror fanatic. He works IT during the day and tries to battle the urge to sleep with a healthy consumption of caffeine.

Much like film noir, Justin Robinson was born and raised in Los Angeles. He splits his time between editing comic books, writing prose, and wondering what that disgusting smell is. Degrees in Anthropology and History prepared him for unemployment, but an obsession with horror fiction and a laundry list of phobias provided a more attractive option. He is the author of ten novels in a variety of genres including detective, humor, urban fantasy, and horror. Most of them are pretty good.

Rissa Blakeley is the author of a fantasy paranormal series, Corvidae Guard, a post-apocalyptic series, Shattered Lives, and a horror short, Grammy's Supper.

As a native New Yorker, Rissa is now a Georgia transplant, who is completely addicted to black coffee and La Croix. When Rissa isn’t writing, she can be found procrastinating on social media.

C.S Anderson has been writing since he could form written words and now has several series available on Amazon. All of them available in Ebook and paperback formats with a growing list available on Audible! Complete list of series as follows-

The Black Irish Chronicles

Black Irish

Irish Lullaby

Irish Car Bomb

In the Country of the Blind

Dark Molly Series

The End of the Beginning

Branded

Blood Bath: The Devil's Dance Floor

Sean Erksteine: Vampire Bartender

The Zombie Extinction Event Trilogy

Suffer the Little Children

Hush

War

The Dabbler Novels

Sin City Succubus

Sin City Angels

The Lana Chaney Diaries

Book One: That Time of the Month

The Destiny Files

Book One: The Blood Rose

Also a few stand alone novels and several anthologies

Jessica Gomez, a bestselling author, who skillfully juggles her time between family and the captivating worlds she weaves through her writing. A true bibliophile and self-proclaimed eccentric, she engages in lively debates with the characters residing in her mind, especially the irresistibly hot bad boys willing to set the world ablaze for the ones they love.

Outside the realm of writing, Jessica finds joy in outdoor family activities and globe-trotting adventures. Her writing is a delightful reflection of her quirky sense of humor and unabashed sarcasm, guaranteeing moments of laughter in the most unexpected places. Brace yourself for those odd looks!

Jessica welcomes engaging conversations with readers, whether it's about her own books or any literary works that capture the imagination. Feel free to connect and join the discussion!

Henry Herz writes fiction and creative nonfiction for children. He authored MONSTER GOOSE NURSERY RHYMES (Pelican, 2015; Best Picture Book at SoCal SCBWI Editor's Day), WHEN YOU GIVE AN IMP A PENNY (Pelican, 2016), MABEL AND THE QUEEN OF DREAMS (Schiffer, 2016; Finalist, Foreword Indies Best Picture Book), LITTLE RED CUTTLEFISH (Pelican, 2016), CAP'N REX & HIS CLEVER CREW (Sterling, 2017), GOOD EGG AND BAD APPLE (Schiffer, 2018), HOW THE SQUID GOT TWO LONG ARMS (Pelican, 2018), ALICE'S MAGIC GARDEN (Familius, 2018), TWO PIRATES + ONE ROBOT (Kane Miller, 2019), I AM SMOKE (Tilbury House, 2021).

His children's short stories have appeared in Highlights for Children, Ladybug Magazine, and elsewhere.

Henry edited three anthologies: BEYOND THE PALE (adult fantasy by Peter Beagle, Heather Brewer, Jim Butcher, Rachel Caine, Kami Garcia, Nancy Holder, Jane Yolen), COMING OF AGE (Albert Whitman & Co., MG #ownvoices), and THE HITHERTO SECRET EXPERIMENTS OF MARIE CURIE (Blackstone Publishing, YA horror by Mylo Carbia, Stacia Deutsch, Sarah Beth Durst, Alethea Kontis, Jonathan Maberry, Seanan McGuire, Scott Sigler). He is an editor for Running Wild Press.

While she mostly focuses on Horror, Valerie Lioudis is a multi-genre author who has been known to dabble in post apocalyptic, science fiction, and even metaphysical stories. The common thread with Valerie's work is her constant sarcasm, and love for bringing the unexpected to her readers. She loves the art of writing a short story.

Recently, she has branch out into Amazon's new platform Kindle Vella, with two stories Dark Awakening and Chained by Destiny.

Follow her on Instagram @ValerieLioudis

Grivante writes strange, squishy horror with a grin—zombie tales that make you laugh, gag, and turn the page way past your bedtime. You might’ve seen him on the back of a milk carton in the '80s, but that was probably his twin brother, Bob. They still haven’t found him. Weird, right?

He's the twisted brain behind The Zee Brothers: Zombie Exterminators, a fast-paced, gut-busting series that slathers B-movie horror in buckets of comedy, action, and the occasional inappropriate innuendo. Think Army of Darkness meets Shaun of the Dead, with a dash of The Dukes of Hazzard for seasoning.

Fans of authors like David Wong (John Dies at the End), Jeff Strand, and Rick Gualtieri will feel right at home here—assuming “home” smells like cordite, wet dog, and day-old brains.

When he’s not busy dreaming up end-of-the-world scenarios, Grivante runs Grivante Press, publishing weird, wild speculative fiction that refuses to behave.

Want to keep tabs on his latest shenanigans? Find him on Social Media under the name, Grivante!

Kevin J. Kennedy is a horror author, editor, and anthologist. He is also the owner of KJK Publishing and he runs the bestselling 'The Horror Collection' series.’ He is the author of Halloween Land, and The Clown.

He lives in the heart of Scotland with his beautiful wife, three cats, Carlito, Ariel and Luna, and a Pomchi called Orko. He can be found on Facebook if you want to chat with him.

Veronica Smith is a lover of all things horror. Whether she’s reading, writing, or watching; that’s what you will find her doing when she isn’t at her day job. She treats every day as if it was Halloween and hasn’t yet been fired for decorating her office as if it’s a haunted house. She’s been writing since 2014, when her first short story was published, and works on several projects simultaneously. She lives in Katy with her husband of over thirty years.

viewAuthor.at/VeronicaSmith

tinyurl.com/VeronicaSmith-Godless

www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B014JCZQT4

www.facebook.com/Veronica.Smith.Author

www.twitter.com/Vee_L_Smith

Terry Miller is the author of Den of the Wererats, Wererats Underground, We All Die Eventually, and Love You to Death. His work has also been featured in anthologies from around the world. Miller is a 2017 nominee for the Science Fiction and Fantasy Poetry Association's Rhysling Award for his short-form poem, "Salome's New King".

An award-winning author, Steve Stred lives in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, with his wife and son.

Known for his novels, ‘Mastodon,’ ‘Churn the Soil,’ and his series ‘Father of Lies’ where he joined a cult on the dark web for four years, his work has been described as haunting, bleak and is frequently set in the woods near where he grew up. He’s been fortunate to appear in numerous anthologies with some truly amazing authors.

His novel ‘Mastodon’ will be translated into Czech and Italian over the next few years.

His novel 'Churn the Soil' won the 2024 Indieverse Award for Best Horror Novel.

I grew up in the Barossa Valley, an area of South Australia predominantly settled by German immigrants. As a dark-haired, tanned little English girl (remember Britain was at one stage occupied by the Romans), I was very different and mercilessly teased.

I remember the struggle to learn to read – painfully stringing three letter words together – there was Sam and Pam and a ball. Sometimes there was a fat cat on a mat or dog with a ball. Reading was a slow process until one birthday, I sat down with my gift, a Famous Five book by Enid Blyton. The mystery story was so exciting, I finished it in one session and I was a fast reader from that moment onwards. I loved Enid Blyton, her Wishing Chair stories, Magic Faraway Tree stories, fairy-land and toy-land stories as well as the mysteries.

A couple of years later, I discovered The Lion, Witch and Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. It was so amazing, I read it seven times in a row! Eventually, I discovered there was a whole series… I survived on this sort of fair until I was sixteen and read The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien. That gave me a taste for mature fantasy. In search of more riveting reading, I discovered Stephen King and James Herbert. Stephen King’s Danse Macabre led me to H.P. Lovecraft, on whom I completed a Master’s project.

My Thesis entitled: THE LITERARY MANIFESTO OF H.P. LOVECRAFT: A WRITER IN SEARCH OF A THEORY (1993-1994) was completed as a reseach project which replaced several subjects in my Master of Arts through the Univeristy of New South Wales. The last chapter was considered to have the most appeal to fans of Lovecraft's work and was extracted and published as “Symbolism of Style in `The Strange High House in the Mist'", Lovecraft Studies 31, edited by S.T. Joshi, pp.11-15. (Published under the name of Cecelia Drewer).

In 1988, I wrote my first full length fictional manuscript, often scribbling on the train as I travelled from Newcastle to Sydney to attend post graduate study at university. In the year 2000, I brought my second full length manuscript into being and 2004 saw my third full length manuscript. All are very different genres and all are waiting for readers! I have always been clever at creating dialogue and in 2010, a Nativity Play I wrote was produced by a local church.

In 2016 I wrote an online course on “Poetry Appreciation and Analysis Skills” on Open Learning. The course can be found at: https://www.openlearning.com/courses/poetry-appreciation-and-analysis-skills

I also write for Weekend Notes (an online magazine) and Hubpages. My Poetry can be found on Poetry Soup at: https://www.poetrysoup.com/poems_poets/best/85098/cecelia_hopkins-drewer

Books by Cecelia Hopkins Drewer include:

Silver Springtime (The Silver Springs University Series #1) by Cecelia Hopkins-Drewer - 2017

Faith and Love (The Silver Springs University Series, #2) by Cecelia Hopkins-Drewer - 2018

All For Love: on the charity dating show by Cecelia Hopkins - 2018

Mystic Evermore (The Nevermore Parables, #1) by Cecelia Hopkins-Drewer - 2018

Saints and Sinners (The Nevermore Parables, #2) by Cecelia Hopkins-Drewer - 2018

Autumn Secrets (The Nevermore Parables, #3) by Cecelia Hopkins-Drewer - 2018

Short-fiction author, and poet, Nerisha Kemraj, hails from Durban, South Africa. She is the mother of procrastination, and two beautiful girls.

T.D. Ricketts is a resident of the Mighty Mitten aka Michigan.

Married for over 40 years and his wife deserves a medal for putting up with him.

Two beautiful daughters, three grandsons and a granddaughter round out the crew wandering in and out of his house. Throw is various dogs walking around and you can imagine the fun.

A self confessed short story junkie with several books in the works.

Most recently a foray into kids books with illustrator Vea Lewis. https://www.vealewis.com/bio

They have made a great book. Motorcycles that go Zoom and Vroom!

Look soon for a compilation of his short

Recently retired with time to write so look for new stories soon.

Brandy Bonifas currently resides in Ohio with her husband and son. When she isn't busy reining in her rambuctious preschooler, she spends late nights at her laptop working on her next story. Her speculative fiction spans several genres and her writing has appeared or is forthcoming in anthologies by Clarendon House Publications, Zombie Pirate Publishing, and Pixie Forest Publishing. To find out more visit her at http://brandybonifas.com where you can also subscribe to her blog for updates on her current projects and releases.

Hayley Lawson is an English author who currently resides in New York. When she's not writing, she spends her time watching movies and hanging out with her family.

After ten years in the Australian Army, Lee Franklin has been a personal trainer, logistics officer and the mother of three boys. Lee loves running, coffee and is owned by her dogs Benji and Terra. Usually, elbow deep in gore, Lee also writing high action and dark speculative fiction with twists. Find out more on her website; www.leefranklin.com

Jen Tyes is a native of Buffalo, New York but currently residing in Connecticut. She served in the United States Army as a Motor Transporter, receiving an honorable discharge before attending college. Jen obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from the State University of New York at Brockport and subsequently began her career as an Information Technology professional. Early in her career, Jen obtained a Master of Science degree in Management Information Systems from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Although her passion for technology continues to flourish, thanks to her children and their creativity, her passion for writing has become more important in her life. Jen aspires to share her writing with the world and be an example for her children. Her goal is to show them that no dream is too big and no impact is too small.

G. Allen Wilbanks, an internationally best-selling author on Amazon, is a retired police officer living in Northern California. For twenty-five years he wrote collision and crime reports to pay the bills while writing short fiction at nights to keep himself sane. In 2016, he retired from real life to live in a fantasy world of his own making full time.

He is a member of the Horror Writers Association (HWA) and has had over 200 short stories published in Deep Magic, Daily Science Fiction, Mythic, The Colored Lens, as well as many other magazines, e-zines and anthologies from all over the world.

In addition to short stories, G. Allen is the author of several novels, including the Amazon #1 best sellers, A Life of Adventure, Deadly Seven, and Testing Grounds. He recently concluded his science fiction trilogy, On Dangerous Grounds, with the Hunting Grounds, and he is currently hard at work on new series of novels tentatively titled Dead Town.

For additional information, please check out his website, and feel free to say hi in the comments section.

Rich Rurshell is a writer of Horror, Fantasy, and Science Fiction. From his home in Suffolk, England, Rich likes to ponder the existence of the sinister, the fantastic, and the downright terrifying. He likes to explore the darker side of life and what lies within us, and celebrate the beauty in the world and what lies beyond.

Shawn M. Klimek is an internationally published poet and short story author specializing in science-fiction, fantasy, horror, and humor, frequently blended. Over 250 of his works have been published in anthologies and e-zines. Hungry Thing is his first, self-published book. Follow him on Facebook @shawnmklimekauthor, XTwitter @shawnmklimek, or via his blog: jotinthedark

DM Burdett was born in the UK, roamed as an army brat, and now lives in Australia where she spends her days avoiding drop bears and killer spiders.

She has published a Sci-Fi series, had success with short stories, and is currently working on a YA dystopian series.

She has worked in software development for three decades and has published two children’s series on the subject.

A life of roaming the shores of Australia in her teardrop caravan calls to her but, until then, there always seems to be just one more software project to complete.

Visit her website : www.dmburdett.com

Hari Navarro has for many years now been locked in his neighbours cellar. He survives due to an intravenous feed of puréed extreme horror and Absinthe infused sticky-spiced unicorn wings.

His anguished cries for help can be found via Black Hare Press, Raven & Drake Publishing, Black Ink Press, Hellbound Books, 365 Tomorrows, Breachzine, AntipodeanSF and Horror Without Borders.

Hari was the Winner of the Australasian Horror Writers’ Association [AHWA] Flash Fiction Award 2018 and has, also, succeeded in being a New Zealander who now lives in Northern Italy with no cats.

A.S. Charly writes speculative fiction from her home 1,100m above the sea. To date, her works have been published in various online literary outlets and appeared in more than 50 print anthologies. When she’s not dreaming up new worlds, she's busy running the European half of Starry Eyed Press.

Find her at: www.starryeyedpress.com or https://www.facebook.com/A.S.Charlydreams/

Charlotte O’Farrell is a horror writer. A lifelong fan of the genre, she writes about all manner of the weird and wonderful. Her stories have appeared in anthologies and podcasts.

She writes daily flash fiction on Twitter (@ChaOFarrell) and Facebook (@AuthorCharlotteOFarrell). She lives in the East Midlands of England with her husband, daughter and cat.

Umair Mirxa lives and writes in Karachi, Pakistan. His first published story, 'Awareness', appeared on Spillwords Press. 'Anonymous' in Zombie Pirate Publishing's anthology, 'Flash Fiction Addiction', is his first story in print.

The publication of these stories is the realization of a lifelong dream he first saw as a kid after reading 'Adventures of a Wishing-Chair' by Enid Blyton. The early dream, a casual hope of one day telling stories to the world himself, became a goal when his mother bought him the two-volume set, 'Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Novels and Stories' by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and it had transformed into a burning ambition by the time he'd finished reading 'The Hobbit' and 'The Lord of the Rings' by J.R.R. Tolkien.

He remains a massive Tolkien fan, loves everything to do with mythology, fantasy, and history, and wishes with all his heart that dragons were real. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading novels and comic books, playing video games, listening to music, and watching movies, TV shows, and football as an Arsenal FC fan.

Joel is a writer, librarian, ex-teacher and part-time human from the UK. He is constantly planning stories, novels and screenplays, a very small number of which actually get written. His genres of choice are horror and sci-fi, although the odd bit of sentiment does manage to sneak in between the freakishness and disturbing twists.

To date, Joel's stories have found their way into anthologies such as the Multispecies Cities (World Weaver Press), With Blood and Ash (Eerie River Publishing), and the Dark Drabbles series (Black Hare press), as well as featured on sites including EveryDayFiction.com, RuneBear.com and CreepyPasta.com.

Dawn DeBraal lives in rural Wisconsin and has published over 700 short stories, poems, and drabbles, in many online ezines and printed anthologies including two novels. The Lord's Prayer, A Series in Horror which won the Literary Global Book award, and under the pen name of Garrison McKnight, what the hell happened to joan? Dawn was a finalist in the Owl Canyon Hackathon 2023, runner-up in the 2022 Short Story Horror Contest, Author of the Month Spillwords x2, Contributor of the Year 2023 Spillwords Magazine, Member of the Month in The World of Myth x2, Your Daily Poem contest winner, 2012. The Falling Star Magazine nominated her for the 2019 Pushcart Award, a song published in the House of Harmony, International Habitat for Humanity Song Book, and a finalist in the "Great American Song Writing Contest." 2016.

Amber M. Simpson is a dark speculative fiction writer from Northern Kentucky with a penchant for horror and fantasy. Her fiction has been featured in multiple themed anthologies as well as online. She has acted as Assistant Editor for Fantasia Divinity Magazine since 2017, where she's gotten to work with many talented authors from all over the world.

While she loves to create dark worlds and diverse characters, her greatest creations of all are her sons, Maxamus and Liam, who keep her feet on the ground even while her head is in the clouds.

To learn more, visit: https://ambermsimpson.com.

Derek Dunn is an author of horror and fantasy fiction whose works have appeared in various anthologies. He’s been a musician and film enthusiast for many years and received a bachelor’s degree in Media Arts Studies. Derek grew up in Middle Tennessee but now resides in Kansas.

Eleanor Merry was born and raised in beautiful Vancouver, BC and still lives there with her tiny human. The offspring of a fairy queen and an undead warlord, she was brought up with an appetite for terror and beauty.

When she isn’t writing, she is a voracious reader with eclectic tastes which tends to lean towards horror and the twisted, however is known to indulge in dirty romances on the side. Her influences include authors such as Brian Keene, Mark Tufo, Richard Laymon and Tillie Cole. In all genres, nothing is off limits and she looks forward to sharing more of her own twisted and strange thoughts with the world.

N. M. Brown is a married mother of three who has taken the horror community by storm this year. She has lived in St. Augustine, Florida for her whole life and took creative writing in high school.

Her ability to create, terrify, and drive home stories is insurmountable. Whether you are a parent, spouse, animal lover or anyone even remotely susceptible to fear, this is your girl.

Brown's published works can be found in multiple anthologies for all to read, but be forewarned, if you do... you may want to call your therapist after, her stories are terrifying, disturbing and devilishly unsettling.

She is not only a fright in print, but also has a creepy tentacle in horror podcasting as well. This Sinister Sweetheart writes, voice acts and is the media director of the Scarecrow Tales podcas

Chris Bannor is an LGBTQIA+ speculative fiction writer who lives in Southern California. Chris learned her love of genre stories from her mother at an early age and has never veered far from that path. You can find her serial novels on Kindle Vella. Chris has also been published in over 50 anthologies. Her stories range from horror and science fiction, to romance, fantasy, and steampunk.

When Chris isn’t writing, she enjoys movie marathons, binge-watching TV shows, musical theater, and road trips with her family. Otherwise, she is a general homebody who lives with her two teenagers, a cat, and two dogs. You can follow Chris on Facebook @chrisbannorauthor or at her homepage at www.ChrisBannor.com

Dean M. King is an American author who lives with his wife, Kelly, and their son on Northeast Wisconsin’s Door Peninsula. He is a member of the Horror Writers Association and the Great Lakes Association of Horror Writers.

Dean finds inspiration for his stories in remote areas of Wisconsin’s vast Northwoods, on the islands that lay off its coasts, and among the stalwart bluffs of Central and Southwest Wisconsin. Whether Dean is writing about a dreadful creature that crawled from the Mississippi River or a drag race between a street-toughened hoodlum and the devil, you can be sure (maybe even, a little afraid) that his stories will haunt you long after you read the final page.

Dean has published several short stories in online and print venues. Sarah’s Cross is his first novel.

Follow Dean King on Facebook @AuthorDeanKing

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Cassandra Angler is a lifelong resident of the buckeye state (Ohio) and a happily married mother of four. When she isn't corralling her four minions of darkness she is busy conjuring nightmares in literary form, reading and overall trying to better the world. Cassandra has always been a fan of all things horror and macabre. Some of her influences include Eleanor Merry, Stephen King, Paige Dearth, and Brian Keene.

Be kind always, and nightmare on.

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