Well, ghouls we are nearly two weeks away from our annual Ghoulish Book Festival (March 15, 16, 17), and things are getting predictably hectic, but we thought today would be a good time to finally announce the official program schedule for this year’s event. If you haven’t purchased a badge yet, please consider doing so HERE.
But first, I’d like to announce our wonderfully ghoulish sponsors for GBF 2024:
Emberletter Press
Bucket O’Blood Books and Records
Crystal Lake Publishing
Madness Heart Press
Madness Heart Games
Cemetery Gates Media
Horror DNA
John Chambers
Last Girls Club Horror Zine
A few more things before we get to the schedule: Although not mandatory, masking will still be highly encouraged during our upcoming Ghoulish Book Festival. Please consider the safety of our disabled and/or immunocompromised ghouls! We all want to have a good, spooky time together. (A limited amount of KN95s will be available at our check-in area.)
The venue’s address, for those who need reminded: 525 S St Mary’s St, San Antonio, TX 78205
What to know about the layout of the festival: There are three floors total—a basement, a first floor, and a second floor. Everybody is encouraged to enter the building from the back, though the garage, which will take you directly into the basement. The bar and vendor room will be found in the basement. The room for live readings and workshops will be found on the second floor. The room for panels, mass author signings, and spooky campfire contests will be found on the top floor. We will have signs displayed guiding people the right direction.
It is also crucial to remind everybody that the top floor will be off-limits on Sunday until 1pm.
Additionally, you may only park on the festival premises on Saturday and Sunday. On Friday, you will have to park elsewhere (we recommend the relatively inexpensive lot directly across from the venue, next to the Springhill).
Food trucks will be available throughout the weekend.
Mark you’re attending on our Facebook event page HERE and come hang out in the Ghoulish discord HERE.
One final note: badges are not required for the vendor bookshop or mass author signing. Badges are only needed to attend panels, live readings, and other events. If you’d like to purchase a badge and help support the fest, click HERE.
GBF 2024 PROGRAM
Friday (March 15th)
12:00 | Registration & Bookshop Opens
Come collect your GBF badges and begin shopping in our vendor room!
1:30-2:30 | The Goosebumps Panel
Readers beware, you’re in for a whole dang conversation about R.L. Stine’s beloved horror series! What made these books so popular with children, and how have they stood the test of time? Let’s kick off the Ghoulish Book Festival by celebrating one of the most important treasures this genre has to offer.
Moderator: Leticia Urieta
Panelists: L.P. Hernandez, Tiffany Meuret, Becky LeJeune, and Rob Saucedo
2:30-3:30 | EXTREME MOTHERFUCKING HORROR!!!
What is extreme horror, and how does it stand out from other forms of the genre? Is there such a thing as “too far”? How do you write extreme horror and let your mother read it? All of these questions and (hopefully) much more will be answered here.
Moderator: Lucas Mangum
Panelists: John Baltisberger, RJ Joseph, Bridgett Nelson, and Eda Easter
3:30-4:00 | Reading: Wesley Southard & Wile E. Young
4:00-5:00 | Horror in Music
You’ve heard of music. You’ve heard of horror. But have you heard of horror in music? We’re also suspicious of this panel’s sustainability, but fortunately its fate is in our moderator’s hands. Please blame him if it doesn’t work out.
Moderator: Bob Pastorella
Panelists: Grace Reynolds, Jessica McHugh, Matt Blairstone, and Michael Allen Rose
5:00-5:30 | Reading: John Chambers & Michael Tichy
5:30-6:30 | Talkin’ True Crime
Sometimes crime isn’t fiction. Sometimes it’s real life. Not false crime but true. And we obsess over it and dissect these NOT FICTIONAL stories in books and documentaries and podcasts and probably other things. Why is that? What’s our deal, anyway? Let’s talk about it.
Moderator: Laurel Hightower
Panelists: Kayli Scholz, RJ Joseph, Michael Louis Dixon, and Bridget Brave
5:30-6:30 | Blackout Poetry Workshop
What is blackout poetry? How do you start? What are you people doing in my bedroom? With the goofy and ghoulish guidance of 3x Bram Stoker Award-nominated poet Jessica McHugh, create your own blackout poem & learn tips & tricks from her forthcoming blackout poetry playbook, Seek & Hide.
6:30-7:30 Bookshop Closes & Dinner Break
You will have to wait until tomorrow to continue shopping. Please go eat something before you die. We will not be responsible for your corpse.
7:30-8:30 | Horny Horror
Our legal team has not approved of any descriptions we’ve cum up with for this panel. They also advised us not to spell “come” the way we did in the previous sentence. We have chosen to ignore this advice.
Moderator: Grace Reynolds
Panelists: Victoria Nations, Bridgett Nelson, Jessica McHugh, and Sonora Taylor
8:30-9:00 | Reading: Ravven White & RJ Joseph
9:30-11:30 | Curious Twins Paranormal Ghost Tour
Everybody will meet out front on the sidewalk at 9:15pm for the ghost tour. Note: tickets are required for this event! Come explore the Riverwalk’s haunted history on this tour as we share about indigenous burial and life along the river, bizarre murders and executions, San Antonio’s red-light district, haunted bars and clubs as well as tragic floods that changed the course of our city’s history.
Saturday (March 16th)
10:00-11:00 | Mental Health in Horror
Why is mental health in the horror genre often portrayed so laughably offensive? How can we avoid these mistakes in our own writing? What are some examples of poor betrayals, and what are some examples of mental health tackled correctly? Please note: the Ghoulish Book Festival does not officially endorse the act of tackling anything. Unofficially, however, is a different story (we love it).
Moderator: Preston Fassel
Panelists: Michael Tichy, Ellie (E. M.) Roy, Kayli Scholz, and RJ Joseph
11:00-11:30 | Reading: Bridgett Nelson & Zachary Rosenberg
11:30-12:30 | The Uncanny Valley
How real is too real? What exactly is the uncanny valley, and how do we kill it? Is it too late? Are we in too deep? Are any of us even real anymore? Join us for a lighthearted discussion about the end of everything.
Moderator: Jason Krawczyk
Panelists: Chris Panatier, Bob Pastorella, Holly Rae Garcia, and Ellie (E. M.) Roy
12:30-1:30 | The Ins and Outs of Indie Publishing
Have you ever wondered what the heck indie publishing is? Well, then this is the panel for you. You’ve finally come to the right place. We are very proud of you.
Moderator: Jeff Strand
Panelists: Matt Blairstone, Mark Scioneaux, Holly Rae Garcia, and Chris Krawczyk
1:30-2:00 | Lunch Break
Put some food in your face.
2:00-2:30 | Reading: Leticia Urieta & Jason Krawczyk
2:30-3:30 | Witchcraft & the Occult
Anybody who attends this panel will be hexed. This is not a joke. If you read this description after attending the Witchcraft panel, we are afraid your life is now in great danger. Or is that grave danger? Note: Google if the expression is “great danger” or “grave danger” when you’re finished with the first draft of these panel descriptions. Note #2: Don’t forget to delete these notes before printing the program books.
Moderator: Ravven White
Panelists: Bob Pastorella, Jessica McHugh, H.V. Patterson, and Jess Hagemann
3:30-4:30 | Writing Research 101
The ultimate panel on how to research your writing projects.
Moderator: Richard Z. Santos
Panelists: Laurel Hightower, Daniel Kraus, Jess Hagemann, and Leticia Urieta
4:30-5:00 | Reading: Ellie (E. M.) Roy & Kayli Scholz
5:00-6:00 | Writing Horror Comics
So, what’s it like writing horror comics? We’re going to tell you, whether you want us to or not, and you’re going to listen.
Moderator: Zach Chapman
Panelists: Miguel Myers, Daniel Kraus, Matt Brandenburg, and Rob Saucedo
6:00-7:00 | Bookstore Closes & Dinner Break
Our vendor room has closed for another day, but do not be sad, because now it’s time to stuff your spooky little mouths with some supper.
7:00-8:00 | The Writer’s Guide to Shameless Self-Promotion
We cannot promise everything advised on this panel will be legal. Obligatory “please don’t sue us” plea. Seriously. We cannot afford any court fees right now. Do you have any idea how expensive it is to put on a three-day festival in the downtown area of a city? Holy shit please don’t sue us.
Moderator: Kelby Losack
Panelists: Jeff Strand, Sonora Taylor, Wesley Southard, and Richard Z. Santos
8:00-8:30 | Reading: Laurel Hightower & Daniel Kraus
8:30-10:00 | Mass Author Signing
Free to the public! No badge required!
Upstairs, in our ballroom (the panel room) a certifiable buttload of horror writers will be selling and signing their books for anyone cool enough to cross their paths. Writers such as . . .
Lucas Mangum, Michael Allen Rose, H.V. Patterson, Jeff Strand, Michael Louis Dixon, Ryan C. Bradley, Sonora Taylor, John Baltisberger, Johnny Compton, Eda Easter, Richard Z. Santos, Jes McCutchen, John Chambers, Zachary Rosenberg, Kayli Scholz, Bridgett Nelson, Preston Fassel, Chris Panatier, LP Hernandez, Kathleen Palm, Matthew M. Bartlett, Matt Brandenburg, Michael Burt, Victoria Nations, Max Booth III, Jessica McHugh, RJ Joseph, and Daniel Kraus.
10:00-11:00 | The Annual Ghoulish Book Festival Spooky Campfire Storyteller’s Horror Storytelling Contest™ (2024)
Featuring spooky readings from . . .
Lucas Mangum, Michael Allen Rose, H.V. Patterson, Jeff Strand, Michael Louis Dixon, Ryan C. Bradley, Sonora Taylor, John Baltisberger, Andrew Hilbert, Rob Saucedo, and (returning champ) Bridget Brave.
Sunday (March 17th)
10:00-10:30 | Reading: Richard Z. Santos & L.P. Hernandez
10:30-11:00 | Reading: Eda Easter & Chris Panatier
11:00-11:30 | Reading: Kelby Losack & R.C. Hausen
11:30-12:00 | Reading: Jes McCutchen & Bob Pastorella
12:00-12:30 | Reading: Matthew M. Bartlett & Johnny Compton
12:30-1:00 | Reading: Shelly Lyons & Jessica McHugh
1:00-2:00 | The Beauty of SOV Horror Movies
Join us as we discuss the under-appreciated world of shot-on-video horror sleaze created by low-budget filmmakers and sometimes genuine psychopaths.
Moderator: Miguel Myers
Panelists: Jason Krawczyk, Daniel Kraus, Lucas Mangum, and Max Booth III
2:00-3:00 | Wrestling in Horror
This is the second year in a row we’ve ended the festival with a wrestling panel. Last GBF, a panelist literally died on stage. How will we top things this year?
Moderator: Ryan C. Bradley
Panelists: Lucas Mangum, Mark Scioneaux, Michael Allen Rose, and Johnny Compton
3:00-5:00 | Book Shopping Continues
The events are finished but our free-to-the-public vendor room remains open for another two hours! Now’s the time to finish any last-minute shopping before everybody goes home.
5:00 | END OF FESTIVAL
Oh no, everybody went home!
