New Challenge: Tengwar
Each day for thirty-six days, we feature a randomly chosen letter from the Tengwar as a prompt.
SWG News
A Sense of History: Crossroads
In the ongoing series on towers in Tolkien's work, a thread runs through "The Lord of the Rings," revealing the divine assistance of Varda in the travails of the Fellowship.
Cultus Dispatches: Canon Deviations, Multifandoms, and Original Content
Tolkien Fanfiction Survey data gives some insight into what connections, if any, exist between fanfiction and original fiction.
The SWG Is Featured in Two Journal Articles
In a recent special issue of "Transformative Works and Cultures" about platforms, the SWG was discussed in two articles.
New & Updated Fanworks
[Writing] Dealing with Dreams by Himring
Elrond and Elros are haunted by what happened and also by what did not. They live with it.
[Writing] Tengwar (working title) by cuarthol
For the Tengwar prompt challenge. To be updated as new prompts are completed.
[Writing] Do you cut down down blossoming trees in the spring for firewood? by Himring
In western Numenor, there is an area famous for its trees and plants. But the Faithful have been banished to the east. And in the last days of Numenor, on the coast an army assembles...
[Writing] Family Gossip by StarSpray
“You,” Fingon pronounced, “are drunk. I am not going to give you anyone’s name just so you can make up a silly drunken ballad."
[Writing] Lost and Found by awwyeah107
In the aftermath of the second kinslaying, Maglor and Maedhros are faced with the disappearance of a pair of twins: Eluréd and Elurín.
Years later, another pair of twins—this time under the Fëanorians’ care—are missing: Elrond and Elros.
[3 chapters, posted over 3 consecutive days…
[Writing] What Comes Naturally by Rocky41_7
Two queens of the Noldor discuss motherhood.
[Writing] Emissary by Uvatha the Horseman
60 years before the War of the Ring, The Mouth of Sauron is being raised as an illegitimate son in the house of his father. More than anything, he craves security and a title of his own.
Current Challenge
Tengwar
A daily prompt of a Tengwar letter per day. Read more ...
Random Challenge
Teen Spirit
In honor of the SWG becoming a teenager, create a fanwork about an adolescent character or adolescence using our prompt generator. Read more ...
New in References
[]
With Gildor Inglorion we finally climb the stairs of Elostirion and look on the view, and what we see appears to reveal a hidden thread in the story of Frodo Baggins. This post reads two annotated translations of two Elvish songs to step through a crossroads in the narrative to arrive at the tower on the margin of the story, wherein is a stone that is a window onto Valinor.
Grief, Grieving, and Permission to Mourn in the "Quenta Silmarillion" by Dawn Walls-Thumma
[]In a book as full of death as the Quenta Silmarillion, grief and mourning are surprisingly absent. The characters who receive grief and mourning—and those who don't—appear to do so due to narrative bias. Grief and mourning (or a lack of them) serve to draw attention toward and away from objectionable actions committed by characters.
In the House of the Fairbairns by Simon J. Cook
[]The first of some posts on the Elf-tower on the western margin of The Lord of the Rings attempts to frame the relationship between the narrative and the appendices of The Lord of the Rings and an analysis of Frodo's dream-visions.
Beyond the Silmarillion
[Writing] Waybread (The Waybredlik) by Himring
[]Lembas speaks out.
[Series] Apr 1st Stories by Uvatha the Horseman
[]Once a year on April 1st, a canon character from LOTR or the Silmarillion gets pranked.
[Writing] Crossing Forest River by Dawn Felagund
[]Bilbo recounts, in verse, the attempt of Gandalf, Beorn, and him to cross the Forest River after the Battle of Five Armies. Written for the Hungarian Tolkien Society's 2024 Mailing Competition.
Around the World and Web
Tolkien Ekphrasis Week 2024
This is a Tolkien-fandom-wide event dedicated to the art of ekphrasis in Tolkien's worlds, hosted on Tumblr and Dreamwidth.
Tolkien Society Seminar: Tolkien's Romantic Resonances
This free hybrid event explores the influence of Romanticism on Tolkien's works.
Glorfindel Week 2024
Glorfindel Week is a week-long Tumblr event for creating fanworks that celebrate Glorfindel. Glorfindel Week will run April 29-May 5, 2024.
Teitho April/May Challenge: Quotes
Teitho is a monthly fanfiction contest. Our April/May prompt uses the source material directly for inspiration with quotes to choose from.
PhD Research on Writing Tolkien's Female Characters: Participants Needed
Interview participants are needed who write Tolkien-based fanfiction about female characters.
References by Title
A Woman in Few Words: The Character of Nerdanel and Her Treatment in Canon and Fandom by Dawn Walls-Thumma
A review of the canon facts available on Nerdanel and discussion of why she remains so popular with fans despite her scarce appearances in the texts.
Published on 15 January 2008.
| | |
Answers from Old Sources: What Does That Name Mean? by darthfingon
An investigation of the meaning of some of Tolkien's more elusive Elvish names.
Published on 1 March 2009.
| | |
Lámatyávë: If you have no idea what that word means, read this article by darthfingon
Why the "sound taste" of a name is often more important than the meaning when naming original characters.
Published on 1 February 2011.
| | |
Name Calling: Group Identity and the Other among First Age Elves by Angelica
As the names used by the early Elves to identify themselves and others evolved according the essay Quendi and Eldar (HoMe 11), relationships between the different cultures are revealed.
Published on 14 September 2007.
| | |
| | |
"Promote What You Love": An Interview with Elleth by Elleth, Dawn Felagund
After discovering an interest in female characters and femslash, Elleth used her enthusiasm for these fanworks to run multiple events that helped the Tolkien fandom undergo its transformation from dismissal of women characters to accepting and even celebrating fanworks about them.
Published on 23 December 2022.
| | |
'Sindarin' is a Quenya Word: how the clan names make Elvish more confusing by darthfingon
The clans of the Elves are almost always named in Quenya, and this month's column demystifies how various Elven people would have referred to themselves in their own languages.
Published on 1 October 2009.
| | |
10 Important Moments in Tolkien Fanfiction History by Dawn Walls-Thumma
From the appearance of the first Tolkien fanfics in 1960 to the latest appreciation months, Tolkien fanfiction has weathered changes great and small—and has persisted, changed, and grown.
Published on 22 February 2024.
| | |
1936 by Simon J. Cook
In 1936, a shadow had fallen over Europe. Tolkien's lecture on Beowulf looked to the past to draw for the present moment a theory of courage in the face of an uncertain future.
Published on 6 August 2023.
| | |
A Sudden Outcry: The Tolkien Estate and Fanworks by SWG Newsletter Staff
In March 2022, the Tolkien Estate opened a newly designed website, including an FAQ that left fans asking: Did the Tolkien Estate just ban fanworks? We use the Estate's history, along with copyright law, to make the case that fans have nothing to fear.
Published on 11 March 2022.
| | |
A Tribute to the Library of Moria by Dawn Felagund, Himring, and Talullah
As the Library of Moria prepares to close its doors, we look back at twenty years of the archive's history and consider the ways that the Library contributed to making slash and femslash a part of mainstream Tolkien fanworks fandom.
Published on 30 July 2022.
| | |
Aegnor by oshun
Like so many Silmarillion characters, Aegnor has a complex and sometimes contradictory textual history. A fiery warrior and romantic with a heart of gold that could belong only to a son of Finarfin, Aegnor is one of The Silmarillion's many fascinating minor characters.
Published on 1 September 2010.
| | |
Affirmational Fandom, Transformational Fandom, and Two Old Tolkien Fanfics by Dawn Walls-Thumma
The two oldest known Tolkien-based fanfiction works illustrate the concepts of transformational and affirmational fandom and how both approaches are vital to Tolkien fanworks fandom.
Published on 17 June 2023.
| | |
Ailinel by oshun
In honor of Legendarium Ladies April, this biography looks at the life of a woman who existed at the heart of the politics during Aldarion's reign in Númenor and yet remains voiceless. What do we know of Ailinel's character and what of the vast questions that remain?
Published on 1 April 2018.
| | |
All About Accents! by darthfingon
What do all those accents and symbols in Tolkien's languages mean? This column explains what they mean and how to pronounce them.
Published on 1 November 2010.
| | |
Amandil by Russandol
Amandil - During Akallabêth in August we feature Amandil, the patriarch of the founders of the realms of Men in Middle-earth. Russandol addresses what the stories tell of Amandil, his evolution as the texts developed, and prompts unanswered questions for inspiration and debate. Originally featured August 2010.
Published on 2 August 2010.
| | |
Amárië of the Vanyar by oshun
Who was this briefly mentioned woman, the beloved of Finrod Felagund? Much of what we know about Amárië must be inferred from the texts.
Published on 1 April 2009.
| | |
Amrod and Amras by Dawn Felagund
Although Amrod and Amras appeared early in Tolkien's work on the legendarium, their characters unwent significant shifts as he worked on the Silmarillion materials of which they were part.
Published on 1 February 2021.
| | |
Amrod and Amras (Seven in '07) by Dawn Felagund
In a brief biography written for the Seven in '07 event, Amrod and Amras are assigned roles that changed and evolved over the course of Tolkien's work on the legendarium.
Published on 6 July 2007.
| | |
Anárion Son of Elendil by oshun
Anárion is one of the characters that acts as a direct link between the histories of The Silmarillion and The Lord of the Rings. This biography considers his role in Tolkien's larger themes, his place in the legendarium, and thorny fannish questions about his status related to Isildur.
Published on 1 September 2017.
| | |
Ancalagon the Black by oshun
Ancalagon is the "darkest and most powerful weapon of Morgoth" and this biography explores what we know of this greatest of dragons, Tolkien's fascination with dragons, and the story's role in providing rare eucatastrophe in The Silmarillion.
Published on 1 November 2017.
| | |
