2026 Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Scholarship
Offered by Horror Writers Association
About this scholarship
The 2026 Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Scholarship awards $2,500 for the professional development of a horror writer who identifies as a woman. Horror Writers Association membership is not required, and applicants may be aspiring, unpublished, emerging, or established writers. The award shares a current Submittable application and competitive review process with the general HWA Scholarship. Candidates submit a separate Education Plan describing the writing education they would purchase and how it would benefit their career, plus an optional writing sample limited to 3,000 words. The committee may consider the plan’s strength, writing quality and potential, the likely value of additional education, commitment and expected contribution to horror, financial need, and the genre’s broader interests. Winners have two years to use the funds for approved items such as recognized writing courses, required course resources, writing guides, limited software, select festival or horror-convention registrations, qualifying subscriptions, or certain writers’ association fees. The scholarship generally cannot pay ordinary college tuition, travel, computer hardware, or HWA membership dues. Applications open August 1 and technically close at 12:00 a.m. Eastern on October 1, 2026, making September 30 the safe final submission day.
Eligibility
- Identify as a woman
- Be committed to writing horror or dark fiction
- HWA membership is not required
- Complete the shared official online application in English
- Upload a separate Education Plan explaining proposed spending and career benefit
- Limit any supporting writing sample to 3,000 words
- Submit before the portal closes at 12:00 a.m. Eastern on October 1, 2026