Deb LeBlanc writes on the HWA website, "While attending WHC 2008, we had the opportunity to meet with the World Horror Society group and express our concerns about the chosen location (Winnipeg) for WHC 2009."  Translation: We ranted and raved to the WHS asking what they were thinking by awarding the WHC to the Arctic Circle. Deb continues, "Some of the concerns noted were the remoteness of the location and expense to travel there—the inherent problems with customs for dealers and/or authors wanting to bring books over the border . . ." Translation: Seriously who even knows where Winnipeg is?  I had to look on a map.  And why even have it out of the US since everyone knows its stupid to have it outside the US since most of the people attending and most dealers are from the US.  Why should we pay more.

Now watch this great juke move by associating the prestigious Edgar Awards with the Stokers: "and the fact that the date scheduled for WHC 2009 fell on the same weekend as the Edgar Awards Banquet. Although the Edgar banquet has nothing to do with HWA, quite a few of our members are also active members of MWA, and the Edgar awards is something they won’t miss. " Translation: By the way the Edgars are the same weekend and at least two of our members are going to those ceremonies and by extension we're cool too and you should take out award seriously.  And it sounds like a reasonable reason as to why we aren't participating in the epic fail that is the Winnipeg WHC.
If the WHC is awarded to Madison, Wisconsin, for example, we will drop the WHC like a hooker that just finished.
She continues, "I didn’t want to commit our Stoker event in ’09 to WHS nor to the folks coordinating that year’s World Horror Convention, then have very few of our members show up. Without question, that would spell financial disaster for our organization and theirs." Translation: No one is going to show p for the WHC in 2009 anyway and even less to a Stoker ceremony there so the HWA doesn't' want to be associated with such an EPIC FAIL, since we can do it ourselves thankyouverymuch.

"To get past all these challenges, HWA’s board has decided to do a stand-alone event in Los Angeles in 2009." Translation: We have a big enough challenge to get people to take us seriously so we are trying to have the Stoker Weekend in a well populated area where there are at least more people interested in the award than Polar Bears.

"Although HWA will not be tied to a World Horror Convention in 2009, that doesn’t mean we aren’t committed to making an alliance between the organizations work whenever possible. We have our fingers crossed that WHC 2010 will be in a location mutually beneficial to both orgs." Ohh,  burn.  Translation: The WHS fucked up mightily by picking Winnipeg and we are hedging our bets just in case the next WHC's are in cool places like London or NYC again.  If they are there then we will once again have the Stokers with the WHC.  If the WHC is awarded to Madison, Wisconsin, for example, we will drop the WHC like a hooker that just finished.