Summer Camp for Horror Writers

Shannon attends Camp NECON and returns recharged and ready to write.

The place is like Brigadoon. Once a year, on the campus of St. Anselm College in one of the most haunted places in the U.S. (New Hampshire, of course), THEY congregate. Who are THEY, you ask? THEY are the most terrifying creatures on earth. THEY are scribes of the spooky, the scary, and the gory. I’m talking about horror writers, of course, with their unhinged imaginations and tales of ghosts and ghoulies and things that go bump in the night.

And the Brigadoon I’m talking about is Camp NECON, an annual event that takes place in mid-July, where horror writers congregate and hold court on the campus of a Catholic college. So why wouldn’t the college want to make the sign of the cross and throw holy water at us to banish us back to hell like the demons we are? (*Editor’s Note: Saint Anselm is the college Lovecraft based Miskatonik University on, so the campus is appropriate—Tom)

The truth is because horror writers are some of the nicest, most welcoming people when they are brought out into the daylight. And Camp NECON brings that energy to the next level.

Because it’s held on a college campus, a lot of us stay in the dorms, so we get to relive our college days in our old age. Hell, as soon as I arrived that Thursday, I dropped my luggage in my dorm, then immediately went across the way to a different dorm to hang out with friends, some of whom I hadn’t seen in a year. I grabbed a drink, pulled up a chair, and shot the shit for a while before heading onto the next adventure.

On this year’s schedule, there were panels ranging from audiobooks to folk horror to imposter syndrome. There were scheduled readings so people got the chance to show off their work and shine. At night there was the authors’ party (where writers sell their wares) and the art show. Saturday night there was some of the greatest karaoke ever run by horror writer/DJ (and MMI blog manager) Tommy Clark.

Then there were the other events not on the official schedule. The scotch and cheese party, hosted by Richard Dansky and Ellen Williams, is always a delight and the hosts are so gracious (a total of sixteen cheeses this year! They don’t play around when it comes to cheese). There was also a musicians’ jam session on the quad where I dragged out my electric to jam with friends I’ve known for years. There were also late-night adventures to walk around campus trying to find ghosts (because, in a horror writer’s mind, EVERYWHERE is haunted).

Of course, the inevitable always happens at NECON: we all stay up waaaaay too late, but that’s part of the fun and tradition. We’re all trying to get in as much socialization as possible by hanging out and conversing. At times I’ll be heading from one place to another and get caught up in a conversation just passing by and the time flies by. The reality of the situation is this might be the only time of year we’re all in the same physical realm as each other, so we work hard to get in as much hang out time with each other as possible.

NECON’s guests of honor this year were authors Clay McLeod Chapman, Johnny Compton, and Christa Carmen, all of whom were lovely to chat with. Beloved couple John and Dianne Buja were the toastmasters and gave a fantastic speech, playing off of each other with their chemistry as only a couple who have a beautiful and long-lasting relationship can. The artist guest of honor, Hagcult, had colorful pulp art on display in the dealer’s room. There was a terrific interview with this year’s honoree, mystery and urban fantasy author Dana Cameron.

Then there was the Legend guest, author Robert McCammon.

Now I only started reading McCammon’s work in the past year and my mind keeps on being blown by his work (Boy’s Life for life!). I had the opportunity to meet the man multiple times at NECON, due to the fact he kept on stopping to ask about my horns. You see, my trademark (and marketing gimmick!) is wearing costume horns at events. At one point I even told him I would wear bigger horns the next day, leading us to take a picture together where I’m standing next to him wearing horns and dragon wings.

That’s the magic of NECON, baby. Random adventures and chance happenings with our heroes.

Special thank you to NECON chair Matt Bechtel and the committee for making this happen every year. Your hard work and dedication is noticed and we appreciate everything that goes into making the magic of NECON happen.

*Cover Photo by Tony Tremblay

Shannon Grant is a writer, performer, adventurer, and horned cryptid living in the wilds of upstate New York. Her work can be found in many small press anthologies such as A Guide to Useless Sidekicks, Catskill Chaos, and The Lizzie Borden House Anthology. She is currently at work on a vampire novella. When not writing, she can be found haunting drive-in movie theaters, karaoke bars, and looking for ghosts in the woods.

PLEASE NOTE: The views and opinions of the staff of Memento Mori Ink do not necessarily represent those of Memento Mori Ink or Crystal Lake Publishing, nor do the views or opinions of Crystal Lake necessarily represent those of Memento Mori Ink or its staff. Thank you for understanding.