The Horror Writers Association periodically gives The Silver Hammer Award to an HWA volunteer who has done a truly massive amount of work for our organization, often unsung and behind the scenes. It was instituted in 1996, and is decided by a vote of HWA’s Board of Trustees.
The award is so named because it represents the careful, steady, continuous work of building HWA’s “house” – the many institutional systems that keep the organization functioning on a day-to-day basis. The award itself is a chrome-plated hammer with an engraved plaque on the handle. The chrome hammer is also a satisfying allusion to The Beatles’ song, “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer,” a miniature horror story in itself.
The Board has voted to give the 2011 Award to Guy Anthony De Marco, who currently serves on the web team, and does a magnificent job of managing the web credentials, among many other duties. Prior to this he served as Chapter Chair. Guy has served the Association and its membership for the majority of the time since he joined in 2007.
HWA’s Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Marge Simon, commented, “The HWA is a success because of the tremendous workload carried by our many volunteers, mostly unnoticed. Guy is an exemplar of these efforts and the Board is pleased to recognise him.”
Guy will receive The Hammer Award at the Bram Stoker Awards™ Banquet in Salt Lake City on 31 March 2012.
The Horror Writers Association is a worldwide organization promoting dark literature and its creators. It has over 700 members who write, edit and publish professionally in fiction, nonfiction, videogames, films, comics, and other media.
An Affiliate Member of HWA, Guy Anthony De Marco is a speculative fiction author, musician, teacher and computer expert. His short stories have appeared in several online and print magazines, including Necrotic Tissue (three issues), OG’s Speculative Fiction and AlienSkin. Guy’s stories also appear in the Help Anthology, two entries in 365 Days of Horror from Pill Hill Press, and the Every Day Fiction Two anthology. He lives in Nebraska with his wife, Tonya, and has passed along the writing bug to his children, Kelsey, Caitlin and Eryk.
