We are pleased to announce the 2026 Splatterpunk Award nominees, for works published in 2025. The awards honor superior achievement in the literary sub-genres of Splatterpunk and Extreme Horror fiction, and are presented for the categories of Novel, Novella, Short Story, Collection, and Anthology.
In addition, the J. F. Gonzalez Lifetime Achievement Award honors individuals who have made a significant impact on the Splatterpunk and Extreme Horror fields.
The winners will be announced, and the awards will be presented, at KillerCon 2026, taking place November 6th through November 8th in Austin, Texas. The nominees are as follows:
No work that contains or makes use of generative AI in its creation, be it cover or the writing of the actual manuscript shall be eligible for consideration or inclusion of the awards, nor any part of KillerCon. We believe in the power of human creation and will always champion the hard work and collaboration of authors, editors, and artists.
If you are seeking to nominate works for the 2027, please fill out this form.
THE CATEGORIES ARE:
- BEST NOVEL
- BEST NOVELLA
- BEST SHORT STORY
- BEST COLLECTION
- BEST ANTHOLOGY
BEST NOVEL
— At Dark, I Become Loathsome by Eric LaRocca (Blackstone Publishing/Titan Books)
— Janitors vs. The Living Dead by Sisters of Slaughter – Melissa Lason and Michelle Garza (Death’s Head Press)
— Music To Sacrifice Virgins To by Kristopher Triana (Bad Dream Books)
— The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones (Saga Press/Titan Books)
— The Home by Judith Sonnet (Madness Heart Press)
BEST NOVELLA
— Disco Rice by Robert Essig (Infected Voices Publishing)
— Playground 2: Child of Divorce by Aron Beauregard (Bad Dream Books)
— Runts by Daniel J. Volpe (Bad Dream Books)
— Strange Stones by Edward Lee and Mary SanGiovanni (Clash Books)
— The Freakshow: Rebirth In Drayton Falls by Bryan Smith (Grindhouse Press)
BEST SHORT STORY
— “And She Was Made of Glass” by Lucas Milliron (from Full Throttle)
— “Executive Decision” by Christine Morgan (from Full Throttle)
— “Red Womb” by C.M. Guidroz (Independently Published)
— “The Tripps” by Wrath James White (from The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King’s The Stand)
— “Wrong Fucking Place, Wrong Fucking Time” by C. Robert Cargill (from The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King’s The Stand)
BEST COLLECTION
— Let Not Your Sorrow Die by Bracken Macleod (Bad Hand Books)
— Teenage Girls Can Be Demons by Hailey Piper (Titan Books)
— The Essential Horror of Joe R. Lansdale by Joe R. Lansdale (Tachyon Publications)
— This Is Splatterpunk: The John Skipp Primer by John Skipp (Fungasm Press)
— Violent Nights by Candace Nola (Uncomfortably Dark)
BEST ANTHOLOGY
— Choices: An Anthology of Reproductive Horror edited by Dianna Gunn (Renaissance Press)
— Full Throttle edited by Candace Nola (Uncomfortably Dark)
— Splatterpunk’s She Dotted Her Eyes edited by Jack Bantry (Independently Published)
— Stories From the Motel Sick edited by Michael Allen Rose (Roshambo Publishing)
—The Rack II: More Stories Inspired by Vintage Horror Paperbacks edited by Tom Deady (Greymore Publishing)
J. F. GONZALEZ LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD*
— Christine Morgan
— Ryan Harding
* The previous J. F. Gonzalez Lifetime Achievement Award recipients are (in order) David J. Schow, David G. Barnett, Edward Lee, John Skipp, Clive Barker, Monica J. O’Rourke, Brian Keene, Wrath James White, Craig Spector, Ray Garton, Joe R, Lansdale, and Lucy Taylor.