A press release from Lisa Morton of the Horror Writers Association:
At long last, the anticipation is over. The Horror Writers Association announced the winners of the 2011 Bram Stoker Awards at its annual awards banquet this weekend. This year’s presentation was held in Salt Lake City, Utah, at the World Horror Convention, and marks the 25th Anniversary of the awards.
Twelve new bronze haunted-house statuettes were handed over to the writers responsible for creating superior works of horror last year. This year’s winners are:
Novel: Flesh Eaters by Joe McKinney (Pinnacle Books)
First Novel: Isis Unbound by Allyson Bird (Dark Regions Press)
Young Adult Novel (tie): The Screaming Season by Nancy Holder (Razorbill)
     Dust and Decay by Jonathan Maberry (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
Graphic Novel: Neonomicon by Alan Moore (Avatar Press)
Long Fiction: “The Ballad of Ballard and Sandrine” by Peter Straub (Conjunctions: 56)
Short Fiction: “Herman Wouk Is Still Alive” by Stephen King (The Atlantic Magazine, May
2011)
Screenplay: American Horror Story, episode #12: “Afterbirth” by Jessica Sharzer (20th Century Fox Television)
Fiction Collection: The Corn Maiden and Other Nightmares by Joyce Carol Oates (Mysterious Press)
Anthology: Demons: Encounters with the Devil and his Minions, Fallen Angels and the Possessed edited by John Skipp (Black Dog and Leventhal)
Non-Fiction: Stephen King: A Literary Companion by Rocky Wood (McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers)
Poetry Collection: How to Recognize a Demon Has Become Your Friend by Linda Addison (Necon Ebooks)
Works can be recommended by any member of the HWA. Juries in each category also compile their top picks, and members with Active status then vote works from both the member recommendations and the jury selections onto a preliminary ballot. From there the field is narrowed to the final ballot and Active members choose the winners from that. The award is named for Bram Stoker, best known as the author of Dracula. The trophy, which resembles a miniature haunted house, was designed by author Harlan Ellison and sculptor Steven Kirk.
HWA, in conjunction with the Bram Stoker Family Estate and the Rosenbach Museum & Library, also presented the special one-time only Vampire Novel of the Century Award to Richard Matheson for his modern classic I Am Legend. This award was voted on by a jury chaired by Dracula expert Leslie S. Klinger, and was sponsored by Jeremy Wagner.
In addition, HWA presented its annual Lifetime Achievement Awards and its Specialty Press Awards. Rick Hautala and Joe R. Lansdale were both on hand to accept their Lifetime Achievement Awards. The Specialty Press Awards went to Derrick Hussey of Hippocampus Press and Roy Robbins of Bad Moon Books.
The Silver Hammer Award, for outstanding service to HWA, was voted by the organization’s board of trustees to Guy Anthony DeMarco. The President’s Richard Laymon Service Award was given to HWA co-founder Karen Lansdale.
Related articles previously published on SFScope:
2011 Bram Stoker Award Nominees (20 February 2012)
HWA 2011 Specialty Press Award Goes to Bad Moon Books and Hippocampus Press (23 January 2012)
Guy Anthony DeMarco to receive The Silver Hammer Award from HWA (19 January 2012)
Nominees announced for Vampire Novel of the Century Award (18 January 2012)
Karen Lansdale to receive The Richard Laymon President’s Award from Horror Writers Association (9 January 2012)
Rick Hautala and Joe R. Lansdale are HWA’s Lifetime Achievement Award winners (9 January 2012)