LEE MURRAY WINS TWO PRESTIGIOUS BRAM STOKER AWARDS® BY THE HORROR WRITERS ASSOCIATION
Tauranga-based writer Lee Murray was named the winner in two categories of the international Bram Stoker Awards®, created by the premier organisation of writers and publishers of horror and dark fantasy – The Horror Writers Association.
Due to travel restrictions, this year’s award became a virtual event but that doesn’t mean it was any less inspiring than previous real-life awards. Attendees from seventeen countries were present at a virtual ceremony during StokerCon™ 2021.
Lee Murray was nominated for two of her latest novels – Grotesque: Monster Stories and Black Cranes: Tales of Unquiet Women (co-edited with her Australian colleague, author Geneve Flynn).
On a website devoted to all things horror, Sublime Horror, called Grotesque: Monster Stories a “compelling collection of diverse, thought-provoking worlds” this book was nominated at the Awards in the Fiction Collection category and took first prize. Other
nominees in this category included Velocities: Stories by Kathe Koja, Children of the Fang and Other Genealogies by John Langan, The Cuckoo Girls by Patricia Lillie, and Bloody Britain by Anna Taborska.
Black Cranes: Tales of Unquiet Women was chosen as the winner in the Anthology category. It competed with Miscreations: Gods, Monstrosities & Other Horrors by Michael Bailey and Doug Murano, Worst Laid Plans: An Anthology of Vacation Horror by Samantha Kolesnik, Not All Monsters: A Strangehouse Anthology by Women of Horror by Sara Tantlinger and Arterial Bloom by Mercedes M. Yardley.
Lee Murray, who has reached the finals three times before, admits to being overwhelmed by the double honour, stating she hopes it will mark a new era in Kiwi horror fiction. “We have so much undiscovered literary talent here,” she says, “and our authors offer a unique perspective.”
This author is known for her active work with young Kiwi writers and ongoing support of the literary community of New Zealand. She recently joined forces with local philanthropist Chloe Wright to organise a unique writing retreat for science fiction, fantasy and horror writers in the relaxed surroundings of a Bay of Plenty country estate.
