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.
SWG News
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.
Instadrabbling Sessions for April, May, and June
Instadrabbling continues on the first Saturday of each month on our Discord server.
New & Updated Fanworks
[Writing] How Tolkien Presents Ordinary People in "The Silmarillion" by Dawn Felagund
Inspired by collecting the prompts for the Everyman challenge, this essay considers how ordinary people are subsumed and silenced in The Silmarillion, which begins a three-book arc that ends with the rise of the humble and ordinary.
[Writing] Blessed are the Leave-takers by Isilme_among_the_stars
As prince Curufinwë Fëanáro makes an historical speech from the high court of the King upon Túna, those at the back of the crowd strain to hear.
A silly little scene inspired by Monty Python's "Blessed are the Cheesemakers" scene from The Life of Brian, written for …
[Writing] After the Kinslaying by Deborah Judge
A Teleri fishing boat captain turns to farming on abandoned Noldor lands after her ship is stolen. A Noldor farmer returns with Finarfin to find that his land belongs to the Teleri now.
[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] Until the Stars are All Alight by Dagstjarna
Reembodied in Aman, Celebrimbor decides to return to Middle earth to help heal the darkness and hurt wrought by the ring.
[Writing] a riot of shadow and shine by Elrond's Library
These were simply flashes, a hint of a wider, greater world. A tantalizing glimpse of more, always at the edge of awareness, never within reach. Míriel would grasp it, if something as intangible as the concept of color could overflow in bounteous wonder over her hands.
But…
[Writing] The Exchange by Elrond's Library
An exchange is made during the Great Journey
Current Challenge
Everyman
Create a fanwork about an ordinary character in the legendarium using a quote about an unnamed character as inspiration. Read more ...
Random Challenge
Lost Letters
A character discovers a long-lost letter and ... your fanwork tells the rest! Read more ...
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
Week of Kiliel
A Tumblr event dedicated to the relationship between Kili and Tauriel.
Aspec Arda Week 2026
This week-long event celebrates asexual and aromantic spectrum interpretations and headcanons of Tolkien’s Legendarium.
Angbang Week 2026
Angbang Week is a tumblr event focusing on the relationship between Morgoth and Sauron, running from May 5-11, 2026
April/May Teitho Challenge
Teithio is running a prompt challenge around the theme of "heartbreak."
Tolkien Reverse Summer Bang 2026
The Tolkien Reverse Summer Bang is back for another summer of collaboration between artists and writers!
SWG News
Character of the Month: Salmar-Noldorin
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Salmar is only mentioned once in the published Silmarillion, but it was not always that way. As our Character of the Month for April, Salmar shines brightest in his earliest roles in the legendarium, which were a muddle of ... almost everything. He was a sea god, a musician, a mentor to the not-easily-educable Noldor, and a warrior-bard. Perhaps this was the reason that Tolkien quickly dismantled Salmar's character, passing off his various roles to other characters in the legendarium (there are even germs of the stories of Maglor and Fingon in Salmar's earliest histories!) but retaining him as the character who made the sinister and powerful Ulumúri. (Although the Ulumúri, too, changed as Tolkien's writing evolved.)
Cultus Dispatches: Who Gets to Say? Canon and Authority
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If you write Tolkien-based fanfiction, you've probably thought about and likely discussed questions about canon and authority. Do you give preference to the Silmarillion or the History of Middle-earth version when they differ? Do you go with Tolkien's "final word" or the version he appeared to have thought through and developed most carefully? And where do the various adaptations—the film trilogies, the new show, the decades-worth of Tolkien-inspired games—fit in?
Over the next several months, our Cultus Dispatches column will be looking at issues of how Tolkien fans define and use canon. This month's column by Dawn Felagund looks at Tolkien Fanfiction Survey data around five possible canon authorities: Tolkien himself, other fans, scholars and experts, Christopher Tolkien, and Peter Jackson and other filmmakers. What emerges from looking at these five survey items is that the matter of canon and authority is complex. Fans vary—and widely—in who they regard as an authority and how that impacts their practice, but a few trends emerge, which Dawn looks into in some detail.
You can read the column "Who Gets to Say? Canon and Authority" here.
We are also collecting responses on the question "How do you define Tolkien's canon?" for our Fandom Voices project. You can learn more about the project and contribute your response here.
How Do You Define Canon?
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How do you define the canon of Tolkien's world?
This question forms an undercurrent throughout the Tolkien fandom, not only shaping individual fans' responses to the texts but forming the basis for communities within the fandom, which often differ in their approach to Tolkien's canon.
Fandom Voices is a project that is part of our monthly Cultus Dispatches column where we ask fans to contribute their views and experiences around a topic. For an upcoming column, we will be looking at how fans define canon in Tolkien's world.
All Tolkien fans are welcome for this project, whether or not they create and read/view fanworks, though there is a special section for fanworks creators. You can write as little or as much as you'd like. Responses will be published in an upcoming Cultus Dispatches column. You are of course welcome to remain anonymous if you prefer.
If you'd like to share your views on how to define canon, you can find the response form here.
Tolkien Fanartics: Interview with ArlenianChronicles
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This week, we are thrilled to introduce our newest newsletter column, Tolkien Fanartics, which will focus on everything that is art-related to do with Tolkien. For the inaugural article, the column's lead writer, Anérea, had the chance to chat with the artist ArlenianChronicles (Cassandra) about her artwork, her approach to her work, and her journey to becoming an artist.
If you've spent any time in the #silmarillion tag on Tumblr, you've seen Cassandra's art: its vivid, luminous quality fairly leaps from the screen, and her willingness to tackle some of the most emotionally fraught scenes in the legendarium gives her work a narrative quality that invites contemplation of the stories and relationships behind her characters. You can read Anérea's interview with ArlenianChronicles here.
New Challenge: Middle-earth Is Multitudes
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In notes to W.H. Auden's review of Return of the King, Tolkien wrote, "The theatre of my tale is this earth, the one in which we now live ..." Middle-earth, being a world much like our own, is home to a wide range of characters. In addition to fantasy peoples and creatures that populate Tolkien's imagined world, because Middle-earth is an analogue of our Earth, there would have been diversity within those groups as well, much like in our own world. This month, we’re shining a spotlight on as many character groups as we can fit in—and to be honest, we ran out of space. We hope there is something for everyone in this month’s prompts!
The Middle-earth Is Multitudes challenge will feature two new prompts every day, recognizing the diversity of the people who inhabit Middle-earth. One prompt will focus on a group within Middle-earth, while the second prompt will focus on additional identities or characteristics.
- You do not need to complete a prompt on the day it is featured.
- You can complete one prompt or both, and you can combine prompts from different days.
- Fanworks can but do not need to center on the character's identity; the bigger aim of this challenge is to include more diverse characters in our fanworks in a variety of roles, not only in fanworks that focus on that particular identity.
- We expect there will be overlap between prompts and want to encourage participants not to overthink if a particular character meets a prompt. If you think a person belongs in a particular group, that is good enough for us.
Several other Tolkien fandom events are or will be running while this challenge is active. With this in mind, we've intentionally designed this challenge so that it is easy to combine with other prompts from other events.
You can find the Middle-earth Is Multitudes prompts and prompt calendar here.
In order to receive a stamp for your fanwork, your response must be posted to the archive on or before 15 April 2023. For complete challenge guidelines, see the Challenges page on our website. Many thanks go to Ettelenë for creating this month's stamps!
New Column: Tolkien Fanartics
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Starting next week, we are excited to introduce a new column in our newsletter: Tolkien Fanartics. This art-oriented column will take a closer look at Tolkien fan art, featuring interviews with artists, analysis of Tolkien's art, fan art studies, inspiration, tips and techniques, and more. We very much encourage guest writers and/or artists as well. Anérea is running the project, so reach out to her if you'd like to contribute, or see a particular artist or topic featured. The first feature will be an interview with the artist behind ArlenianChronicles, so watch for it in the March 18 newsletter!
If you'd like to get our weekly newsletter in your inbox with articles and news from in and beyond the SWG, you can subscribe to the newsletter here.
Character of the Month: Maglor
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"Maglor," polutropos begins in this month's character biography, "is a character of contradictions, conflicts, and mystery. It is no wonder that this second son of Fëanor has captured the imagination of so many readers of The Silmarillion."
This is, if anything, an understatement. With 736 fanworks about him, Maglor is the second most written-about character on the SWG, exceeded only by Maedhros (with 804 fanworks). What accounts for this popularity? He's not the only musician (Daeron) or warrior (Fingolfin). He's certainly not the only tragic figure (Túrin fills an actual book).
In this month's biography, polutropos peels away the many layers that make Maglor such an intriguing character. As she notes, he is full of contradictions: one of the Noldor's consummate poets and most fearsome warriors, joining a kinslaying to only moments later take pity upon its orphans. But it's not just Maglor's character arc that makes him so intriguing to Silmarillion fans. As polutropos also illustrates, he contributes to some of the most important themes in the early legendarium: music, exile, and oaths. He is also the rare character where we receive glimpses of his inner life, showing the emotional impact of his rollercoaster life.
Beneath all of this is a textual history at least as complicated as Maglor himself. Undaunted, polutropos unfolds the evolution of Maglor's character across decades, from his first mention (and immediate demise) in the Lost Tales to his tangled history alongside Maedhros, where they frequently traded roles as the merciful and repentant.
Cultus Dispatches: Femslash Is a Political Act
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Fans who have been reading and writing Tolkien-based fanfiction for more than ten years quite possibly remember a time when "femslash" wasn't even a term. While slash sites nominally accepted it, it really wasn't being written, and it's no wonder: As the last several Cultus Dispatches columns in our series on writing about women in fanfiction have detailed, the Tolkien fandom went through a pair of phases where writing about women and writing slash were controversial acts. Caught in the crosshairs of this dual intolerance (it was about ladies! and it was gay!!!), femslash really didn't stand a chance.
But, as we also detailed in last month's interview with Elleth, a concerted effort by fans to not just normalize but celebrate writing about women—and femslash in particular—has pushed back the tides of intolerance and introduced a whole new genre to the fandom. This month's column Femslash Is a Political Act (and Other Observations of Tolkien Fandom's Genre Non Grata) by Dawn Felagund looks at Tolkien Fanfiction Survey data about femslash: how many people write it, how many people read it, and who exactly are among those groups. The results show that femslash has skyrocketed in popularity among readers in recent years, portending that maybe it won't always be the new genre on the block (much less a "genre non grata"), possibly due to its use as a political expression by fans who feel marginalized based on gender, sexual orientation, or both.
Read & Review: The Fall of Númenor
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Lyra opens her review of The Fall of Númenor with the observation that "Tolkien's literary legacy truly is the gift that keeps on giving. Whenever you think that your collection is finally complete, a new publication is announced." The question is, though, is The Fall of Númenor a worthwhile addition to your already groaning Tolkien bookshelf?
In our latest Read & Review column, Lyra reviews The Fall of Númenor, touching on its contents (and what it leaves out), its structure, and the artwork it contains by Alan Lee, concluding that "it is ... an immensely useful publication." You can read Lyra's complete "Review of The Fall of Númenor" here.
New Challenge: Cheesy Corn Chips
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Two best friends share a first kiss, backed by a postcard-perfect sunset. A car chase twists through the streets of Paris before plunging through the Arc de Triomphe—while driving in reverse. The team of lovable and klutzy misfits pulls out a victory over the top-flight bullies, right at the buzzer. Such stories make us roll our eyes and groan but also hold the irresistible appeal of one more nacho chip or candy corn.
This month's challenge celebrates the corny and the cheesy in popular culture, the sappy and sweet and schmaltzy and saccharine. To participate, you will choose a prompt from a collection of corny, sentimental, and heartstring-rending pop-culture selections and use it to create a fanwork. As always, you can use any part of the prompt to inspire your fanwork and interpret it any way that works for you. Note that fanworks themselves do not need to be fluffy, sweet, or sentimental.
In order to receive a stamp, fanworks should be posted to the SWG archive no later than March 15, 2023. You can find Cheesy Corn Chips challenge prompts and complete challenge guidelines under the Challenge menu.
Please note that the Jubilee challenge remains open until February 15, so yes, that means that for a short while, there will be two challenges running!
