New Challenge: Scavenger Hunt
In this Matryoshka-with-a-twist, you will solve clues that point you to the challenge prompts.
SWG News
Sign-Up to Hand Out Scavenger Hunt Prompts
Our May challenge will be a Matryoshka built around a scavenger hunt. If you'd like to hand out prompts (and receive comments on your work for doing so!), you can sign up to do so.
New Challenge: Everyman
Create a fanwork about an ordinary character in the legendarium using a quote about an unnamed character as inspiration.
Cultus Dispatches: Fanworks, AI, and Resistance by Dawn and Grundy
The fan studies column Cultus Dispatches returns with a history of how Tolkien fanworks fandom has reacted and resisted generative AI by drawing strong boundaries in a way that is not typical for the fandom.
New & Updated Fanworks
[Writing] Eä's Redemption by AaronAzrael
This is my new poetical attempt to add my own interpretation to Tolkien's Cosmology as to Eru's Creation and the Valar's minds and behind-the-scene providence reasons and mechanisms.. I often review Eä as part of our own world, just in another dimension, this is why I have always seriously…
[Writing] Hill and Water Under Sky by StarSpray
a collection of drabbles and mini ficlets in the meanwhile the world goes on 'verse that aren't long enough to stand on their own
[Writing] Otornassë by vulpeculi4r
In the aftermath of the third kinslaying and the death of Amrod and Amras, Maglor needs to reassure himself that Maedhros is still there with him.
[Writing] I Sit and Think of Times There Were Before by Erdariel
In his old age, Isildur's former esquire Ruinamacil, known to later histories only as Ohtar, writes his own account of his escape from the ambush at Gladden Fields and journey to Imladris, and the history of his friend whom Isildur ordered to flee with him.
[Writing] From That Rubble by StarSpray
Fëanor shrugged, studying the contents of his wine glass. “Something must be done about that house. It will fall down eventually.”
“It does not follow that it must be you that tears it down single-handedly. Are you sure you do not want help?”
“It’s not as though I…
[Writing] My Hands Long for Far Shores by Elrond's Library
Ereinion Gil-galad wants desperately to sail. Being king gets in the way.
[Writing] The Mirror Crack'd by AdmirableMonster
Rescued from a brutal Angband hunt, an ex-thrall with a strange and powerful artifact embedded in his spine is brought to Himring, for it is one of the only places in Beleriand which welcomes such folk. Though he has no memories of his life before, Anniavas slowly becomes accustomed to his new…
Current Challenge
Scavenger Hunt
Solves clues to find your prompts for this Matryoshka challenge. Read more ...
Random Challenge
New in References
Fandom Draws the Line: Fanworks, AI, and Resistance by Dawn Felagund, Grundy
By definition, fanworks fandom does not draw a lot of boundaries, but community archives and events have taken a strong stance against AI-generated fanworks due to ethical considerations and member input.
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.
Tolkien, Lunatic Physicists, and Abnegation by Cynthia (Cindy) Gates
This presentation for Mereth Aderthad 2025 discusses the parallels between the concept of abnegation in the scientific work surrounding the atomic bomb and in The Silmarillion. The relinquishment of self-interest in favor of the interests of others, abnegation was identified by Tolkien as a powerful act of spirit and reason. The legendarium has many examples of the complexities of abnegation, which parallel similar discussions held by physicists during and after World War II.
Featured Themed Collection
Beyond the Silmarillion
[Writing] Down the Long Years by Isilme_among_the_stars
Bilbo, the strange old hobbit with the wandering feet, senses something special in young Frodo the first time he sees the lad; as they become close, they find in each other a cameraderie not well understood by other hobbits. Five poignant moments between Bilbo and Frodo Baggins over the course…
[Artwork] The Mirror of Galadriel by skywardstruck
Smoke rises from the Mirror, where the Lady of Lothlórien awaits to share its visions.
[Writing] Bar-en-Eladar by Gabriel
Out of the shadow, light is born anew.
A Chieftain is dead. And whilst the events surrounding his death are unclear, a son tries to come to terms with his loss.
Around the World and Web
Scribbles and Drabbles 2026
Scribbles & Drabbles is a fic and art exchange with a minimum word count of 100 words.
Russingon Week 2026
A Tumblr week event focusing on the relationship between Maedhros and Fingon.
Boromir Week 2026
If you are Boromir girlies/gents/stans/simps, then this event is for you! So, come join us, and bring your fanfiction, art, gifs, moodboards, and headcanons that highlight everything you love about our Captain of Gondor!
Silmarillion Epistolary Week 2026
Silmarillion Epistolary Week is a Tumblr challenge dedicated to creating fanworks to tell the story of the Silmarillion in the style of an epistolary novel.
Challenges by Date
Challenges have been a part of the SWG since our group was formed in 2005. Before the archive, there were challenges. Before References or any special projects or B2MeM or any of the myriad things we've done over the last decade-plus, there were challenges. Challenges end and a new challenges is posted on the 15th of the month. (Yes, that means there is one thrilling day each month when there are two active challenges!) Participants—both authors and reviewers—will receive a stamp in their challenge stamp collection for their participation. Deadlines apply only if you want your fanwork to receive a stamp.
Every challenge that has ever been offered by the SWG is available for use by creators of fanworks who are looking for inspiration. Even if the deadline for stamps is passed, you are welcome to use the challenges listed on our site. And comments on past challenge fanworks are always welcome and always receive a reward for that month. Want to join us? Click to read the guidelines below!
- Challenge Guidelines
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- New challenges will be released monthly on the 15th. You can find the current challenge in the Challenge section of our website or listed in the sidebar under Current Challenges. The current challenge can also be found on our satellite groups on Dreamwidth, Tumblr (using the #swg challenges tag), and Discord.
- Challenge entries must be created for the challenge. In other words, a previous fanwork cannot be "retrofitted" into a challenge even if it fits. However, you are welcome to add to an existing fanwork with new content that fits a challenge.
- Challenges will need to be posted to the SWG archive no later than the 15th of the month in order to receive a stamp for that month's challenge, unless otherwise specified. If you are using the challenge prompt as part of another fandom event where the event rules do not allow you to post the fanwork on our archive before the challenge deadline or if you have serious extenuating circumstances that cause you to miss a deadline, you can contact the mods to arrange a deadline extension. Make sure that you add your story to the challenge using the Challenges field on the fanwork submission form. The SWG accepts all types of fanworks (art, audio, link collections, playlists, series, videos, writing, and multimedia fanworks), all types of fanwork are suitable as responses to challenges, and all must be posted to the archive.
- You are welcome to cross-post your work wherever you want, but at a minimum, it must be archived on our website.
- Works must be Silmfic, but any genre, rating, pairing, characters, or format are allowed. Works-in-progress are welcome.
- Challenge participants will receive a stamp for each challenge that they complete. In addition, if you comment on a challenge fanwork, you will receive a stamp for participating as a commenter. Unleash your inner philatelist because we will start a stamp collection for all participants that will be updated from month to month! Some months have special stamps (or even secret stamps ...).
- Comment challenges have no due date. However, if you are commenting on a story posted more than two months ago, we appreciate if you contact us and let us know that you need a stamp. Please note that comment stamps are not available for specific challenges before January 2017.
Current Challenge
Scavenger Hunt
As a kid, were you ever given a list of clues to solve to find the location of small prizes? Or did you play the types of games where you need to talk to people to track down the objects you need? This month's challenge combines a scavenger hunt with a Matryoshka challenge. Tie on your sneakers, grab your map and canteen, and get ready to search!
During a Matryoshka challenge, creators make a fanwork using multiple prompts that are revealed one by one (like nesting dolls!) The Scavenger Hunt challenge puts a bit of a twist on the traditional Matryoshka format.
You will still create a fanwork using multiple prompts. However, instead of receiving those prompts one by one from the moderators, you will seek and find those prompts from other participants or by following clues to locate them on the SWG website.
To start, check the list of prompts below. The interactive path includes clues, pointing a creator on the archive who will provide your prompt for you.
Find the creator and comment on one of the creator's fanworks. Note that this should be a real comment that responds to the fanwork, not just asking for the prompt (though it is helpful if you are clear that you do need a prompt!) The creator will reply to your comment with a prompt.
If you aren't up for interacting with another creator, check out the historical path. Prompts here point to a piece of SWG history located on the site. Find the page and you will find the prompt.
You can mix prompts collected from the interactive and history paths.
You can start your fanwork as soon as you get your first prompt and collect more prompts later, or you can collect all the prompts you want first and go from there. The number of prompts you collect depends on how difficult you would like the challenge to be:
- Beginner = 2 prompts
- Easy = 3 prompts
- Medium = 5 prompts
- Difficult = 7 prompts
For Fanworks That Aren't Writing
If you want to create a fanwork other than fiction for a Matryoshka challenge, you can use any of the following approaches to your prompt set:
- You can, of course, use the Matryoshka rules for fiction. For example, if you are making a fan vid, you could open each prompt one at a time to guide the storyline and selection of video clips.
- You can use each prompt individually to create a series of flash fanworks using either the prompt title or the full prompt (or a mixture of both). For example, if you request a Medium prompt set and want to make fan art, you could do a series of five sketches that fit each of the five prompts.
- You can open all of the prompts at once and make a fanwork that incorporates them all in some way, using either the prompt title or the full prompt (or a mixture of both).
Other Details
There are a number of special stamps available for this challenge. If you need one of the special stamps, you will need to let the moderators know.
- Completing the Difficult (7-prompt) challenge.
- Completing a challenge using all prompts from the interactive path.
- Completing a challenge using all prompts from the history path.
- And if you use both prompt types (interactive and history prompts), there is a special stamp for you too!
What if the creator never replies with a prompt? Please allow creators at least twenty-four hours to reply. If you do not receive a prompt by that time, let the moderators know the fanwork you commented on, and we will send you a prompt.
Moderators will be monitoring comments during this challenge to ensure that participants receive a prompt in a timely fashion. If the fanwork creator later responds too and gives you a prompt, you can use them both if you want.
This is a collaborative challenge. If you take "collaborative" to mean solving the clues with others, that is allowed! If you post to our Discord, please use the #monthly-challenges channel and spoiler any clues you solve so that those who are trying it on their own aren't spoiled.
And finally, here are some links that may help with solving the clues:
- List of all SWG creators
- Browse fanworks by character, genre, or relationship
- Find a Fanwork
- History of the SWG on Fanlore
View prompts for the Scavenger Hunt challenge.
Everyman
Create a fanwork about an ordinary character in the legendarium using a quote about an unnamed character as inspiration. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Famous Last Words
Use a noteworthy last line to inspire your fanwork. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Title Track
Create a fanwork using our collection of 125 titles from Tolkien's books, chapters, essays, poems, and fragments as inspiration. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
New Year's Resolution
Our annual amnesty challenge allows you to complete and receive stamps for challenges you missed in the past year. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Great Beleriand Bake-Off
Ready? Set? Bake! Our two-month daily prompt calendar includes sweet- and savory-themed prompts as well as weekly comment challenges. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
The Only Thing To Fear
Create a fanwork about fear that involves a prompt you select from our list of common fears. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Jumble Sale
Member-created prompts upcycle old challenges and prompts with additional new twists. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Kids These Days
Create a fanwork using a bingo card of prompts based on common gripes about kids and teens. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Swinging 40s
Choose a prompt from a list of music, films, novels, inventions, and more from the 1940s. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Gates of Summer
Create a fanwork based on prompts about summer taken from Tolkien's life, canon events, and quotes from his letters and stories. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Period Drama
A Matryoshka challenge where prompts are inspired by common tropes found in period dramas and historical fiction. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Musicals
Craft a fanwork inspired by songs from musicals. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Birthday Bash
Daily word, image, and poetry prompts are loosely structured around events and milestones leading up to our 20th birthday. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Dark Matter
Create a fanwork using anti-prompts: prompts that don't appear in your fanwork. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Jubilee
This January, for our annual amnesty challenge, any challenge from January 2017 onward is fair game! Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Tolkien Meta Week
Tolkien Meta Week is a week-long event to encourage fans to create nonfiction works related to Tolkien's world. Tolkien Meta Week will run from December 8-14, 2024 on Tumblr and here on the Silmarillion Writers' Guild archive. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Festival of Lights Fest
This is a fun and low-key event meant to encourage works about or inspired by Hanukkah, running this year in conjunction with the Potluck Bingo challenge. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Potluck Bingo
Help yourself to a collection of prompts on bingo boards designed by members and friends of the SWG. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Orctober
A mysterious map points to locations used by escaped Orcs who seek to live in freedom. For this month's challenge, use elements from that map and those quests to create your fanwork, with a bonus puzzle to solve for those who dare attempt the ultimate escape. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
Idiomatic
Raining cats and dogs. A short fuse. Up a creek without a paddle. A piece of cake. Sometimes colorful, sometimes puzzling without backstory or explanation, these delightful turns of phrase enrich our language—whichever one it happens to be. Prompts this month are idioms from languages around the world. Challenge opened in . Read more ...
