WILLIAMSBURG — Several Virginia horror writers will be gathering for a Halloween-oriented event and book signing Oct. 18.
Authors of scary fiction and nonfiction will be on hand to sign books, provide giveaways and discuss spooky stories from Virginia’s dark corners. Copies of “Dark Corners of the Old Dominion,” a collection of Virginia-set horror stories by local authors, will be available. Proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to local charity Scares That Care.
Scares That Care hosts the annual local convention Author Con. Every year, it gives a gift of $10,000 to three individuals: a breast cancer patient, a burn survivor and a sick child. Recently, it also staged an event called Killer Pride to help raise money for the cause.
Sidney Williams, one of the authors at this event, said he was at Turn the Page Bookshop last spring when he was approached with the idea of having a group of writers come together for an event. A long-standing member of the Horror Writers Association, Williams reached out to his peers and heard back from several interested parties.
“A lot of us (authors) met for the first time at Scares that Care, and so it seemed like a perfect idea to put out a collection that would benefit and be kind of our contribution to Scares that Care,” Williams explained.
Authors scheduled to attend include:
- Brýn Grover (“Beyond the Pale;” “Jamie’s Closet”)
- Pamela K. Kinney (“Nowhere Land;” “Virginia’s Haunted Historic Triangle”)
- Red Lagoe (“Bloodstains By Gaslight;” “In Excess of Dark”)
- Ryan T. Jenkins (“Come to Daddy” in Split Scream Volume Six)
- Sidney Williams (“Gnelfs;” “Scars and Candy”)
- Valerie Williams (“Penfold’s Menu of Magic and Malice;” “The Vanishing Twin”)
“I hope that people that are interested in scary stories and spooky stories of all kinds find us because we have a broad spectrum of styles,” Williams said.
The event will take place from noon until 4 p.m. at the Turn the Page Bookshop. For more information about the store, visit its official website.
