From the Archives:
First H.O.W.L. Meeting Slated for Halloween
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October 31, 1983, has been tentatively scheduled for the initial meeting of
the Horror/Occult Writers League (H.O.W.L.), a project spearheaded by
horror-thriller author Robert McCammon, who regards the formation of the group
as a step toward bestowing a separate-genre status that would be of benefit to
writers, readers and booksellers.
McCammon explained to PW in a recent
interview that the idea to form a
writers league arose after discussions
with several people in the book industry.
Some of the goals, McCammon
pointed out, are to increase the visibility
of the genre by offering awards for
excellence in writing, to provide an opportunity
for camaraderie among writers in the field—and
to encourage publishers to recognize the genre as a
category distinct from science fiction,
fantasy or mystery. McCammon believes
that readers would appreciate
such increased clarification and that
booksellers would face less confusion
when it comes to shelving titles.
Some writers who specialize in
the horror occult area are currently
members of science fiction or mystery
writers associations, even though their
specialty is considered a subcategory.
McCammon believes that authors
like himself represent a potentially
vocal industry group. With five books
in the genre to his credit (the most
recent being Mystery Walk, a May title
from Holt, Rinehart and Winston),
McCammon regards the horror/occult
area not as a phenomenon of the 1980s,
but one that has been a part of publishing
"ever since Grendel stalked out
of the swamp" and one that has led
to some contusion in labeling during
recent years. "What puzzles me,"
McCammon said, "is that the award
for mystery—the Edgar—is a bust of
Poe."
Following the example of other specialty
organizations, H.O.W.L. will
have a member newsletter, according
to McCammon. who explained that
other activities (including awards) are
in the discussion stage and will serve as
topics at the initial meetings tentatively
planned for New York and Los Angeles
in the fall. Such meetings, he noted,
could provide special promotional and
media opportunities. In the face of existing
confusions about overlapping
categories, one of the first tasks of
H.O.W.L. will be to define its parameters.
To McCammon, one of the characteristics of
the genre is therapeutic:
"I believe horror is important psychologically—people
are drawn to these
books because they often find it helps
them to deal with their own horrors and
fears." He encourages all writers interested
in the new organization to contact
him at XXXXX, Birmingham, AL.
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