What Is the Bram Stoker Award?
By Doug Brinlee
Bram Stoker wrote one of the greatest horror stories of our time and gave birth to one of the most iconic horror characters ever, Dracula.
As a founding author of the genre, the award for excellence in horror literature is named in his honor. The Bram Stoker Award is an annual award given out by the Horror Writers Association (or HWA) to honor the year’s biggest achievements in horror writing. The awards have been held since 1988 (for work from the previous year) when the organization was first founded. The idea behind the awards and the HWA has never been one of competition among the writers but of encouragement and support. The Bram Stoker Award, also known as the Stoker Award or just ‘The Stoker”, is not necessarily given the best work for the previous year but to the work that has done the most achievement for horror literature.
The Horror Writers Association
The Bram Stoker Awards are an important ceremony to the Horror Writers Association. The HWA got its start back in the early 1980’s when horror author Robert R. McCammon expressed interest in an organization specifically for his genre. His reasoning was that every genre had its own organization except for horror. With the assistance of author Jon R. Lansdale and his wife Karen, they formed the then fledgling association known as the Horror and Occult Writers League, or HOWL. The group’s early by-laws stated that the goal of Howl was that it was “a non-profit organization of professional writers of fiction and non-fiction pertaining to or inspired by the traditions, legends, development, and history of horror and occult. Its members are together for their mutual benefit in an earnest effort to further a more widespread publicity, promotion, distribution, readership and appreciation of the literature of horror and occult."
The first full meeting of the HWA happened at the World Fantasy Convention in Tucson, Arizona on November 3, 1985. The name HOWL was changed to the Horror Writers or America for reasons of a better public image and to be taken seriously by writers and fellow organizations. Later in 1993, the name was altered again to the Horror Writers Association to better include international members. Eventually, a board of trustees was set up to oversee the organization’s operations. Then group president, horror writer Dean R. Koontz, suggested an annual award for superior achievement and excellence in the horror field. The first annual Bram Stoker Award and Banquet was then held in New York in 1988. The HWA since has approximately 500 active members from around the globe and consists of both professional and amateur writers in the horror field.
Rules and Requirements for the Bram Stoker Award
The Bram Stoker Award, Also known as The Stoker Award or just ‘The Stokers’, is non-juried. To be eligible for the award, the nominated work must first have been published in English. Any HWA member can nominate a work for consideration. All active members then vote and put selected works onto a preliminary ballot. After that there are two rounds of voting by Active members determine the finalists and then finally the winners. The Bram Stoker winners are announced and presented their awards at the annual HWA conference and banquet held every June.
The Bram Stoker Awards are currently divided into nine separate categories: Novel, First Novel, Long Fiction, Short Fiction, Fiction Collection, Anthology, Non-Fiction, Poetry, and Lifetime Achievement. The award itself is a small replica of a haunted house. It was designed by Harlan Ellison and sculpted by Steven Kirk. Inside the house is a brass plague which is revealed when you open the house’s front door. The name of the author and their winning work is engraved inside.
Bram Stoker Award Winners
Here are the winners of the Bram Stoker Awards since the first annual ceremony in 1987:
1987 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Misery by Stephen King and Swan Song by Robert R. McCammon (tie)
First Novel: The Manse by Lisa Cantrell
Novelette: "The Pear-Shaped Man" by George R.R. Martin and "The Boy Who Came Back From the Dead" by Alan Rodgers (tie)
Short Story: "The Deep End" by Robert R. McCammon
Collection: The Essential Ellison by Harlan Ellison
Non-Fiction: Mary Shelley by Muriel Spark
Life Achievement: Fritz Leiber, Frank Belknap Long, Clifford D. Simak
1988 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
First Novel: The Suiting by Kelley Wilde
Novelette: "Orange is for Anguish, Blue for Insanity" by David Morrell
Short Story: "Night They Missed the Horror Show" by Joe R. Lansdale
Collection: Charles Beaumont: Selected Stories by Charles Beaumont
Life Achievement: Ray Bradbury, Ronald Chetwynd-Hayes
1989 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Carrion Comfort by Dan Simmons
First Novel: Sunglasses After Dark by Nancy A. Collins
Novelette: "On the Far Side of the Cadillac Desert With Dead Folks" by Joe R. Lansdale
Short Story: "Eat Me" by Robert R. McCammon
Collection: Richard Matheson: Collected Stories by Richard Matheson
Non-Fiction: Harlan Ellison's Watching by Harlan Ellison and Horror: The 100 Best Books Stephen Jones & Kim Newman (tie)
1990 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Mine by Robert R. McCammon
First Novel: The Revelation by Bentley Little
Novelette: "Stephen" by Elizabeth Massie
Short Story: "The Calling" by David B. Silva
Collection: Four Past Midnight by Stephen King
Non-Fiction: Dark Dreamers by Stanley Wiater
Life Achievement: Hugh B. Cave, Richard Matheson
1991 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Boy's Life by Robert R. McCammon
First Novel: The Cipher by Kathe Koja and Prodigal by Melanie Tem (tie)
Novelette: "The Beautiful Uncut Hair of Graves" by David Morrell
Short Story: "Lady Madonna" by Nancy Holder
Collection: Prayers to Broken Stones by Dan Simmons
Non-Fiction: Clive Barker's Shadows in Eden by Stephen Jones
Life Achievement: Gahan Wilson
1992 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Blood of the Lamb by Thomas F. Monteleone
First Novel: Sineater by Elizabeth Massie
Novelette: "Aliens: Tribes" by Stephen Bissette and "The Events Concerning a Nude Fold-Out Found in a Harlequin Romance" by Joe R. Lansdale (tie)
Short Story: "This Year's Class Picture" by Dan Simmons
Collection: Mr Fox and Other Feral Tales by Norman Partridge
Non-Fiction: Cut! Horror Writers on Horror Film by Christopher Golden
Life Achievement: Ray Russell
1993 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: The Throat by Peter Straub
First Novel: The Thread that Binds the Bones by Nina Kiriki Hoffman
Novella: "The Night We Buried Road Dog" by Jack Cady and "Mefisto in Onyx" by Harlan Ellison (tie)
Novelette: "Death in Bangkok" by Dan Simmons
Short Story: "I Hear the Mermaids Singing" by Nancy Holder
Collection: Alone With The Horrors by Ramsey Campbell
Non-Fiction: Once Around the Bloch by Robert Bloch
Other Media: Jonah Hex: Two Gun Mojo by Joe R. Lansdale
Life Achievement: Joyce Carol Oates
Special Trustees Award: Vincent Price
1994 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Dead in the Water by Nancy Holder
First Novel: Grave Markings by Michael Arnzen
Novelette: "The Scent of Vinegar" Robert Bloch
Short Story: "The Box" by Jack Ketchum and "Cafe Endless: Spring Rain" by Nancy Holder (tie)
Collection: The Early Fears by Robert Bloch
Life Achievement: Christopher Lee
1995 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Zombie by Joyce Carol Oates
First Novel: The Safety of Unknown Cities by Lucy Taylor
Novelette: "Lunch at the Gotham Cafe" by Stephen King
Short Story: "Chatting With Anubis" by Harlan Ellison
Collection: The Panic Hand by Jonathan Carroll
Nonfiction: The Supernatural Index by Michael Ashley & William Contento
Life Achievement: Harlan Ellison
1996 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: The Green Mile by Stephen King (Signet)
First Novel: Crota by Owl Goingback (Donald Fine)
Novelette: "The Red Tower" by Thomas Ligotti (The Nightmare Factory)
Short Story: "metalica" by P.D. Cacek (Hot Blood: Fear the Fever)
Collection: The Nightmare Factory by Thomas Ligotti (Carroll & Graf)
Nonfiction: H.P. Lovecraft: A Life by S.T. Joshi (Necronomicon Press)
Life Achievement: Ira Levin, Forrey Ackerman.
1997 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Children of the Dusk by Janet Berliner & George Guthrdge
First Novel: Lives of the Monster Dogs by Kirsten Bakis
Novelette: "The Big Blow" by Joe R.Lansdale
Short Story: "Rat Food" by Edo van Belkom & David Nickle
Collection: Exorcisms and Ecstasies by Karl Edward Wagner, ed Stephen Jones
Nonfiction: Dark Thoughts: On Writing by Stanley Wiater
Life Achievement: William Peter Blatty, Jack Williamson
1998 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Bag of Bones by Stephen King (Scribner)
First Novel: Dawn Song by Michael Marano (Tor Books)
Long Fiction: "Mr. Clubb and Mr. Cuff" by Peter Straub (Murder for Revenge, Delacorte Press)
Short Fiction: "The Dead Boy at Your Window" by Bruce Holland Rogers (The North American Review, Nov/Dec 98)
Fiction Collection: Black Butterflies by John Shirley (Mark V. Ziesing)
Anthology: Horrors! 365 Scary Stories edited by Stefan Dziemianowicz, Martin H. Greenberg & Robert Weinberg (Barnes & Noble Books)
Nonfiction: DarkEcho Newsletter Vol. 5, #1-50, edited by Paula Guran (DarkEcho)
Comic Book, Graphic Novel, or Other Illustrative Narrative: No Award
Screenplay: Gods and Monsters written by Bill Condon (Lion's Gate Films) and Dark City written by Alex Proyas (New Line Cinema)
Work for Young Readers: "Bigger than Death" by Nancy Etchemendy (Cricket Magazine, March 98)
1999 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Mr. X by Peter Straub
First Novel: Wither by J.G. Passarella
Long Fiction: "Five Days in April" by Brian A. Hopkins; "Mad Dog Summer" by Joe R. Lansdale
Short Fiction: "Aftershock" by F. Paul Wilson
Fiction Collection: The Nightmare Chronicles by Douglas Clegg
Anthology: 999: New Stories of Horror and Suspense edited by Al Sarrantonio
Nonfiction: DarkEcho Newsletter written and edited by Paula Guran
Comic Book, Graphic Novel, or Other Illustrative Narrative: Sandman: The Dream Hunters by Neil Gaiman
Screenplay: Sixth Sense written by M. Night Shyamalan
Work for Young Readers: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J. K. Rowling
Other Media: I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream (audio) by Harlan Ellison
Lifetime Achievement Award: Edward Gorey and Charles L. Grant
2000 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: The Traveling Vampire Show by Richard Laymon
First Novel: The Licking Valley Coon Hunters Club by Brian A. Hopkins
Long Fiction: The Man on the Ceiling by Melanie and Steve Rasnic Tem
Short Fiction: "Gone," by Jack Ketchum Fiction
Collection: Magic Terror by Peter Straub
Anthology: The Year's Best Fantasy & Horror, 13th Annual Collection edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling
Nonfiction: On Writing by Stephen King
Illustrated Narrative: The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (miniseries), by Alan Moore
Screenplay: Shadow of the Vampire by Steven Katz
Work for Young Readers: The Power of Un by Nancy Etchemendy
Poetry Collection: A Student of Hell, by Tom Piccirilli
Other Media: Chiaroscuro edited by Patricia Lee Macomber, Steve Eller, Sandra Kasturi, and Brett A. Savory
Lifetime Achievement Award: Nigel Kneale
Trustees' Award for Specialty Press Excellence: Subterranean Press, William K. Schafer
2001 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: American Gods by Neil Gaiman
First Novel: Deadliest of the Species by Michael Oliveri
Long Fiction: In These Final Days of Sales by Steve Rasnic Tem
Short Fiction: "Reconstructing Amy" by Tim Lebbon
Collection: The Man with the Barbed-Wire Fists by Norman Partridge
Anthology: Extremes 2: Fantasy and Horror from the Ends of the Earth edited by Brian A. Hopkins
Nonfiction: Jobs in Hell
Screenplay: Memento by Christopher & Jonathan Nolan
Work for Young Readers: The Willo Files 2 by Yvonne Navarro
Poetry Collection: Consumed, Reduced to Beautiful Grey Ashes by Linda Addison
Other Media: Dark Dreamers: Facing the Masters of Fear by Beth Gwinn & Stanley Wiater
Lifetime Achievement Award: John Farris
2002 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: The Night Class by Tom Piccirilli
First Novel: The Lovely Bones by Alice Seybold
Long Fiction: "El Dia de Los Muertos" by Brian A. Hopkins;
'"My Work Is Not Yet Done"' by Thomas Ligotti
Short Fiction: "The Misfit Child Grows Fat on Despair" by Tom Piccirilli
Collection: One More for the Road by Ray Bradbury
Anthology: The Darker Side edited by John Pelan
Nonfiction: Ramsey Campbell, Probably by Ramsey Campbell
Illustrated Narrative: Nightside (issues 104) by Robert Weinberg
Screenplay: Frailty by Brent Hanley
Work for Young Readers: Coraline by Neil Gaiman
Poetry Collection: The Gossamer Eye by Mark McLaughlin, Rain Graves and David Niall Wilson
Alternative Forms: Imagination Box (multimedia CD) by Steve and Melanie Tem
Lifetime Achievement Award: Stephen King and Jerry Williamson
2003 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: lost boy lost girl by Peter Straub
First Novel: The Rising by Brian Keene
Long Fiction: "Closing Time" by Jack Ketchum
Short Fiction: "Duty" by Gary A. Braunbeck
Fiction Collection: Peaceable Kingdom by Jack Ketchum
Anthology: Borderlands 5 edited by Elizabeth and Thomas Monteleone
Nonfiction: The Mothers and Fathers Italian Association by Thomas F. Monteleone
Illustrated Narrative: The Sandman: Endless Nights (collection) by Neil Gaiman
Screenplay: Bubba Ho-Tep by Don Coscarelli
Work for Young Readers: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J. K Rowling
Poetry Collection: Pitchblende by Bruce Boston
Alternative Forms: The Goreletter (E-mail newsletter) by Michael Arnzen
Lifetime Achievement Award: Martin H. Greenberg, Anne Rice
2004 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: In the Night Room by Peter Straub
First Novel: (tie) Covenant by John Everson and Stained by Lee Thomas
Long Fiction: "The Turtle Boy" by Kealan-Patrick Burke
Short Fiction: "Nimitseahpah" by Nancy Etchemendy
Fiction Collection: Fearful Symmetries by Thomas F. Monteleone
Anthology: The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror, 17th Annual edited by Ellen Datlow, Kelly Link and Gavin Grant
Nonfiction: Hellnotes edited by Judi Rohrig
Illustrated Narrative: Heaven's Devils by Jai Nitz
Screenplay: (tie) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind by Charlie Kaufman, Michel Gondry and Pierre Bismuth Winner and Shaun of the Dead by Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright Winner (Tie)
Work for Young Readers: (tie) Abarat: Days of Magic, Nights of War by Clive Barker Winner and Oddest Yet by Steve Burt Winner
Poetry Collection: The Women at the Funeral by Corrine De Winter
Alternative Forms: The Devil's Wine edited by Tom Piccirilli
Lifetime Achievement Award: Michael Moorcock
2005 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: (tie) Creepers by David Morrell and Dread in the Beast by Charlee Jacob
First Novel: Scarecrow Gods by Weston Ochse
Long Fiction: "Best New Horror" by Joe Hill
Short Fiction: "We Now Pause for Station Identification" by Gary Braunbeck
Fiction Collection: Twentieth Century Ghosts by Joe Hill
Anthology: Dark Delicacies edited by Jeff Gelb and Del Howison
Nonfiction: Horror: Another 100 Best Books by Stephen Jones and Kim Newman
Poetry Collection: (tie) Freakcidents by Michael A. Arnzen and Sineater by Charlee Jacob
Speciality Press Award: Necessary Evil Press
Richard Laymon (President's Award): Lisa Morton
Lifetime Achievement Award: Peter Straub
2006 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Lisey's Story by Stephen King
First Novel: Ghost Road Blues by Jonathan Maberry
Long Fiction: "Dark Harvest" by Norman Partridge
Short Fiction: "Tested" by Lisa Morton
Fiction Collection: Destinations Unknown by Gary Braunbeck
Anthology: (tie) Retro Pulp Tales edited by Joe Lansdale and Mondo Zombie edited by John Skipp
Nonfiction: (tie) Final Exits: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of How We Die by Michael Largo and Gospel of the Living Dead: George Romero's Visions of Hell on Earth by Kim Paffenroth
Poetry Collection: Shades Fantastic by Bruce Boston
Speciality Press Award: PS Publishing
Lifetime Achievement Award: Thomas Harris
2007 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: The Missing by Sarah Langan
First Novel: Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill
Long Fiction: "Afterward, There Will Be A Hallway" by Gary Braunbeck
Short Fiction: "The Gentle Brush of Wings" by David Niall Wilson
Fiction Collection: (Tie) Proverbs for Monsters by Michael A. Arnzen; 5 Stories by Peter Straub
Anthology: Five Strokes to Midnight edited by Gary Braunbeck and Hank Schwaeble
Nonfiction: THE CRYPTOPEDIA: A Dictionary of the Weird, Strange & Downright Bizarre by Jonathan Maberry & David F. Kramer
Poetry Collection: (Tie) Being Full of Light, Insubstantial by Linda Addison and VECTORS: A Week in the Death of a Planet by Charlee Jacob & Marge Simon
Lifetime Achievement Award: John Carpenter, Robert Weinberg Richard Laymon
President's Award: Mark Worthen, Stephen Dorato, Christopher Fulbright
2008 Bram Stoker Award Winners
Novel: Duma Key by Stephen King
First Novel: The Gentling Box by Lisa Mannetti
Long Fiction: “MIRANDA” by John R. Little
Short Fiction: “The Lost” by Sarah Langan
Anthology: Unspeakable Horror edited by Vince A. Liaguno and Chad Helder
Collection: Just After Sunset by Stephen King
Nonfiction: A Halloween Anthology by Lisa Morton
Poetry: The Nightmare Collection by Bruce Boston
Lifetime Achievement Award: F. Paul Wilson and Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
Specialty Press Award: Bloodletting Press