Ann Radcliffe
Academic Conference
For Academic Researchers across the Horror Genre!
The Ninth Annual Ann Radcliffe Academic Conference at StokerCon 2026
Please note: All registered StokerCon attendees may attend the Ann Radcliffe paper presentations.
Ann Radcliffe Academic Conference Schedule - Friday June 5
Panel A: Horrific Philosophies - 8:30-9:45am
"Frankenstein and his Creature: narcissism's tragic consequences"
George Hagman
"Nihilism, Gun Violence, and The Long Walk (2025)"
Emma Johnson-Rivard
"Evil is not a Cultural Phenomenon: necrotic phenomenology and pop culture's fascination with dead women"
Dany Prince
Panel B: Transcendent Horrors - 10-11:30am
"The Egg Shaped Universe: seances, channelings, and Hilma af Klint's transcendent paintings"
Shannon Kearns
"Becoming the Apocalypse: the indigipoetics of horror"
Naomi Simone Borwein
"Cannibal Horror in Italy"
Spencer Stoller
Panel C: Horror as Historic Framework - 1-2:30pm
"Pittsburgh as Embodiment of Zombie Culture in Four Snapshots"
Kevin Wetmore
"Occult Wars in the Age of Aquarius: the battle on the bookshelf"
Katherine Kerestman
"Abandoned Malls in/around Appalachia"
Bridget Keown
Panel D: Gendered Tension and Feminist Rebellions - 3-4:30pm
"Locking the Door from the Inside: marriage, surveillance, and institutional power in horror cinema"
Mo Moshaty
"Dracula's Monstrous Femininity"
Rachel Allison
"What's in a Name? Cassandra in horror: resilience through tragedy"
Cassandra O'Sullivan Sachar
"Creation, Grief, Ambition, and the Divine in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, or, The Modern Prometheus (1818)"
Cynthia Pelayo
The Ann Radcliffe Academic Conference is part of the Horror Writers Association's Outreach Program. Created in 2016 by Michele Brittany and Nicholas Diak, the Ann Radcliffe Academic Conference has been a venue for horror scholars to present their work alongside professional writers and editors in the publishing industry. The conference has also been the genesis of the Horror Writer Association's first academic release, Horror Literature from Gothic to Post-Modern: Critical Essays, composed entirely of AnnRadCon presenters, released by McFarland in February, 2020.
Membership to the Horror Writers Association is not required to submit or present, however registration to StokerCon 2026 is required to be accepted and to present. Information regarding StokerCon registration, including day passes and full event registration, can be found on the Stokercon website: https://www.stokercon.com. There is no additional registration or fees for the Ann Radcliffe Academic Conference outside StokerCon registration. If interested in applying to the Horror Writers Association as an academic member, please see www.horror.org/about/.
Please address any questions to AnnRadcliffeCon@gmail.com
