The convention features a dealer room, celebrity and author panel discussions, contests, parties and other activities to keep fans engaged throughout the entire weekend. Horror Realm also supports various charities by raising funds through silent auctions and raffles as well as awareness of the causes.

Celebrity guests announced to date include:

• Jack Ketchum – multiple Bram Stoker Award winning author who has had five of his books made into films, including The Girl Next Door, Red and The Lost; he has been elected Grand Master for the 2011 World Horror Convention
• Ken Foree – lead zombie hunter in the original Dawn of the Dead, also appeared in Rob Zombie’s Halloween, The Devil’s Rejects, Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3 plus Nickelodeon’s family comedy Keenan and Kel
• Brad Loree – actor and stunt performer who played horror icon Michael Myers in Halloween: Resurrection, the eighth installment in the film series and also star of Mr. Hush
• Bill Johnson – best known as Leatherface in Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2
• Eduardo Sanchez – co-writer and director of The Blair Witch Project, the highly successful independent film which won the first ever Independent Spirit John Cassavetes award in 2000
• Lori Cardille – stage, screen and television actress and native Pittsburgher best known as Sarah from Romero’s Day of the Dead
• Antone DiLeo – most recognized for his part as Pvt. Miguel Salazar in Day of the Dead; also worked with Mr. Romero on the films Knightriders and Two Evil Eyes.
• John Amplas – best known for his role in the Romero film Martin, accomplished stage actor and Associate Artistic Director of the Pittsburgh Playhouse Repertory Company
• Tiffany Shepis – noted and popular “scream queen” who has appeared in films such as Nightmare Man, Delta Delta Die! and Tromeo and Juliet

For details on the convention, including exhibitor and sponsor rates, schedule, guests, advance ticket purchase and hotel reservations, please visit: Horror Realm Convention

Please note that all appearances are subject to change based on professional commitments or personal emergencies of the guests. Unless otherwise noted, guests will appear all three days of the show.

Horror Realm is produced by Horrorrealmonline.com and Lifeless Entertainment Ventures.

It’s finally time to pull off the hockey mask and give readers their first look at Famous Monsters Underground, the new bi-monthly horror and counter-culture magazine from Famous Monsters of Filmland. Since the debut issue of Famous Monsters Underground will feature a tribute to ’80s horror, what better way to mark the occasion than with an epic cover of the decade’s most notorious movie icons?

Our hand-painted cover by illustrator Marcus Parcus rounds up the guys who were just a little too handy with chainsaws and butcher knives. And since the ’80s marked a far-reaching renaissance of the fright scene, we’ve buried a few Easter eggs for our more perceptive readers.

Famous Monsters Underground #1 is a celebration of all that was good about the 80′s – creepy campouts, imperiled babysitters, and nightmares made flesh. We chat with film legend John Carpenter about his classic horror flicks and his return to the director’s chair; chronicle the rise of shock rock; and pick Tom Savini’s brain about the ’80s FX make-up revolution. We sit down for an in-depth interview with legendary exploitation auteur Frank Henenlotter, talk vampires and remakes with Fright Night and Child’s Play writer/director Tom Holland, and go behind the scenes of the 1981 cult classic, The Burning. The debut issue also features exclusive contemporary content, including a revealing talk with Jack Ketchum about his new book and film The Woman, a profile of artist and tattoo legend Bob Tyrrell, a guide to the best genre sites on the internet, and much more.

Look for Famous Monsters Underground #1 in major bookstores and specialty retail shops this May.

Cemetery Dance Publications has announced a brand new hardcover edition of the controversial novel The Woman by Jack Ketchum and Lucky McKee. The cloth-bound trade hardcover edition will include a bonus novella.

Although the Cemetery Dance trade hardcover edition will be issued unsigned, Jack Ketchum and Lucky McKee have agreed to personally sign every copy that is pre-ordered during this week. To make this version extra special, Cemetery Dance will be printing a special signature sheet for the authors to sign, which will turn these copies into a very exclusive Limited Edition that is only sold for one week only and only on the Cemetery Dance website.

Description: The Woman is the powerful story of the last survivor of a feral tribe of cannibals who have terrorized the east coast from Maine into Canada for years now. Badly wounded in a battle with police, she takes refuge in a cave overlooking the sea.

Christopher Cleek is a slick, amoral — and unstable — country lawyer who, out hunting one day, sees her bathing in a stream. Fascinated, he follows her to her cave.

Cleek has many dark secrets and to these he’ll add another. He will capture her, lock in his fruit cellar, and tame her, civilize her. To this end he’ll enlist his long-suffering wife Belle, his teenage son and daughter Brian and Peg, and even his little girl Darlin’, to aid him.

So the question becomes, who is more savage? The hunter or the game?

Previously, The Woman was only available as an ultra-expensive deluxe edition with a tiny print run and did not include the bonus novella.

You can pre-order here: The Woman

Stephen King once commented, “Who’s the scariest guy in America? Probably Jack Ketchum.” Many of Ketchum’s fans would agree, as his work often forgoes supernatural trappings and explores real-world terrors with human beings as his monsters-of-choice.

“There’s no one like Ketchum,” said convention co-chair Lee Thomas. “His work is brilliantly crafted, always relevant, and disturbing as hell. Plus, he’s one of the nicest guys you’re ever going to meet.”

“Ketchum’s work was some of the first to really capture my imagination and inspire me as a writer,” said Nate Southard, convention co-chair. “His prose is among the best I’ve ever read, and he’s a master of voice, theme, and character. It’s an honor to have him attend our convention.”

The Grand Master Award is presented to an outstanding contributor to the horror genre by election. Only registered members of the World Horror Convention are eligible to vote, and recipients must be alive at the time of voting. Former Grand Masters include Ray Bradbury, Ramsey Campbell, Peter Straub, Dean Koontz, Clive Barker, Anne Rice, and Stephen King.

Jack Ketchum is the pseudonym for a former actor, singer, teacher, literary agent, lumber salesman, and soda jerk – a former flower child and baby boomer who figures that in 1956 Elvis, dinosaurs and horror probably saved his life. His first novel, Off Season, prompted the Village Voice to publicly scold its publisher in print for publishing violent pornography. He personally disagrees but is perfectly happy to let you decide for yourself. His short story “The Box” won a 1994 Bram Stoker Award from the HWA, his story “Gone” won again in 2000 – and in 2003 he won Stokers for both best collection for Peaceable Kingdom and best long fiction for Closing Time. He has written eleven novels, arguably twelve, four of which have been filmed – The Lost, The Girl Next Door, Red, and Offspring. The Woman, his film collaboration with Lucky McGee (May) will be screened at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. His stories are collected in The Exit At Toledo Blade Boulevard, Broken on the Wheel of Sex, Peaceable Kingdom, Sleep Disorder (with Edward Lee), and Closing Time and Other Stories. His novella The Crossings was cited by Stephen King in his speech at the 2003 National Book Awards.

The World Horror Convention is an annual gathering of professionals in the horror industry: publishers, authors, artists, musicians, filmmakers, dealers and, of course, horror fans. WHC serves as both an industry insider’s networking event and a chance for fans of the genre to get together, meet some of the creative talents in the field, and generally spend a weekend celebrating All Things Scary.

Publisher Movieland Classics, LLC, has announced the release of Famous Monsters of Filmland 253, the first issue in its new bi-monthly production schedule. The company announced its decision to increase the frequency of Famous Monsters to a bi-monthly publication, up from their quarterly term, in response to a substantial demand for more FM content.

“We’ve dropped the cover price and increased our frequency to provide fans with more bang for their buck! I also believe readers will find the new format a lot more fun and still very informative,” announced Senior Manager Philip Kim.

Another noteworthy change: Opening Wounds, the editor’s note has revealed the return of Forrest J Ackerman as the magazine’s Honorary Editor-in-Chief. “This serves as a constant reminder to everyone-those reading and involved in bringing FM to readers-that fandom is fun… and science fiction and horror will never die,” added editor, Jessie Lilley.

Bringing together classic and contemporary horror icons, Famous Monsters 253 features a behind the scenes look at the winter blockbuster, The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader, a peak into Season 2 of AMC’s new hit show, The Walking Dead, an in-depth exclusive with Hellboy filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, and never-before-seen footage of African zombie chiller, The Dead. Also featured in the issue is H.G. Wells’ Island of Lost Souls, the monsters of SyFy, Bollywood thriller Hisss, the return of the classic “Fangmail” and “Mystery Photo,” and an original story by horror author Jack Ketchum. The new release features all this and more, wrapped up in a series of four variant covers by artists Kerry Gammill (Island of Lost Souls), dual covers by Charlie Adlard (The Walking Dead), and an ultra rare cover by the legendary William Stout (Mummy).

With the success of Famous Monsters 252 (now entirely sold out!), the circulation of the popular magazine continues to expand with every issue. Famous Monsters of Filmland is now available in comic shops, major newsstands in Southern California and Canada, major bookstores such as Barnes & Noble and Borders, and Famous Monsters’ online retail store: Captain Company.