The Mortality Report

HWA Colorado presents the virtual Q&A panel The Mortality Report: Medical Professionals on Medicine in Horror.

Did you know that when someone gets shot, they vomit? Join this virtual Q&A event on Wednesday, September 27, 2023, from 7 to 8:30 Mountain time with medical professionals to discuss the representation of medicine in horror media and answer author questions to help make their horror fiction more realistic. Come prepared with questions for the panelists whether it be about a scene in your own writing or something you’ve always been curious about.

This online event will take place via Zoom and is free to public, no registration needed. To join, click here on 9/27/2023 at 7 pm MT.

Meet the Panelists:

Sean Murphy has been a member of the Denver Horror Collective since 2017. He graduated with a BA in English from the Metropolitan State University of Denver. He also has a degree in nursing from the Community College of Denver. Sean has been published in Terror at 5280, an anthology published by the Denver Horror Collective. His work also appears in Wicked Shadow Press’s Soulmate Syndrome Vol. 1 and Flash of the Dead. He is currently working on projects slated for 2023 and can be found haunting neighborhood coffee shops.

Heather Hein is the community outreach coordinator for Writing Heights Writers Association, an event host for Shut Up and Write, blogger for the HWA Colorado, and organizes a bi-weekly horror critique group. She has published several short stories in anthologies and is the author of eight Kindle Vella stories. Her essay, Offerings to the Spider Gods, was published in 20 Bellows We Are the West, for which she was nominated for the 2022 Pushcart Prize. Heather has worn many medical hats: certified nursing assistant, medical assistant, doula, First Aid and CPR trainer, and spent most of her professional career working in medicine (Orthopadics and Neurosurgery) and Disabilities Services. Everything deemed fit for human consumption can be found here: https://linktr.ee/heatherheinwriter

Luther MacKinnon has served and helped others in healthcare for over 25 years. For the first 23 years, he worked in direct care for adults with developmental disabilities. For the last two years, Luther worked as an LPN in assisted living and correctional  facilities. He enjoys helping underserved populations and hopes to continue his education to become a registered nurse soon.

Holly A. Herson, COA, AA, BA, has worked in healthcare for nearly 20 years. She has spent time working in patient care as an ophthalmic assistant, in compliance, administration, and clinic management for small and corporate healthcare practices. She is now working as a federal health policy consultant for a medical technology company, and owns her own consulting and design firm for small businesses and individuals. She has two degrees in political science and is studying at Northeastern University for her MPA in American Healthcare Policy. She has been published in The Ophthalmic Professional, and has written several academic papers on healthcare policy and the ACA. She was the subject matter expert on healthcare policy to a Colorado State Senator in 2017. She is a Colorado native and lives in Fort Collins with her wife and three sons. In her free time she enjoys yoga, reading, and writing fictional short-stories. 

Dr. George Denny completed his undergrad at Saint Louis university, then attended medical school at Washington University in Saint Louis. Dr. Denny completed his residency at Johns Hopkins, specializing in dermatology, which he chose because of its amazing mix of medicine and surgery, being able to see patients of all ages, and having the opportunity to treat problems that patients are significantly bothered by. He now resides in Colorado and works at The Kaiser Clinic.