SWG News

Mereth Aderthad Interview: Interview with Azh, Admirable Monster by Shadow

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Tolkien identified one of the major themes of his work as "the machine": the power and appropriate use of technology. Azh's found fiction "Lightborn" considers the topic of abnegation and scientific progress, based on Cindy Gates' forthcoming presentation on the subject, "Tolkien, Lunatic Physicists, and Abnegation." Shadow spoke with Azh about their story, its real-life inspiration in their work, and the sympathy that Tolkien shows even for characters who commit moral failures.

You can read Shadow's interview with Azh, Admirable Monster here.

Mereth Aderthad Interview: Interview with bunn by Shadow

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Dragons and Dwarves are among the mysterious creatures in the legendarium, and for both, Tolkien took his own inspiration from Germanic myth, folklore, and literature. For Mereth Aderthad 2025, bunn is creating both a story and a work of art for presentations rooted in the Germanic lore of the legendarium: cloudyhymn's presentation "The Design of Dragons and the Doom of Dwarves" and Savannah Horrell's presentation "By Guile Committed: Comparing Tolkien’s Thieves to Beowulf." Shadow spoke to bunn about their work for these two presentations, the appeal of Dwarves, and the many fruitful connections between Beowulf and Tolkien's own work.

You can read Shadow's interview with bunn here.

Mereth Aderthad Interview: Interview with chrissystriped by Dawn

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Chrissystriped is a prolific author on the SWG whose work spans characters and ages and topics. For Mereth Aderthad 2025, chrissystriped is writing for Shadow's presentation, "The Aromantic in Tolkien," and will be sharing a Third Age story that features Bilbo and Boromir as aromantic characters. Dawn spoke with chrissystriped about her story, her process as a writer, and the importance of representing aro-ace characters in fanfiction.

You can read Dawn's interview with chrissystriped here.

Mereth Aderthad Interview: Interview with Dr. Zara Ashkenazi-Khan by Saelind

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The third kinslaying at Sirion is one of the most controversial and discussed moments in The Silmarillion by its fandom. But what makes this moment stand apart in a novel that Dr. Zara Ashkenazi-Khan describes as one of "spectacular violence"?

Saelind interviewed Zara about her upcoming presentation for Mereth Aderthad 2025, "Exile, Ruin and Resistance: Beleriand as Postcolonial Palimpsest." They of course discussed the third kinslaying and why it is "a moment of rupture ... [exposing] a faultline in the narrative’s presumed moral and civilisational order," but they also discussed how The Silmarillion is a text full of such breaking points, moral ambiguities in Tolkien's work, and the role of fanworks and scholarship both in revealing and understanding these complexities.

You can read Saelind's interview with Dr. Zara Ashkenazi-Khan here.

Mereth Aderthad Interview: Interview with Silmalope by Dawn

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Since our first challenge back in 2005, Strong Women, the SWG has sought to establish a creative space where fanworks about characters from underrepresented groups aren't just welcomed but explicitly encouraged. Shadow's Mereth Aderthad 2025 presentation, "The Aromantic in Tolkien," is the perfect example of a fan-turned-scholar bringing forward a character identity that typically goes unseen and unacknowledged. Silmalope is the featured artist for Shadow's presentation, bringing their vibrant style and diverse character representations to the project. Dawn spoke with Silmalope about their inspiration as a creator of Tolkien-based fanworks, their connection to Shadow's topic on ace-aro characters, and the importance of diverse representation in fanworks.

You can read Dawn's interview with Silmalope here.

New Challenge: Period Drama

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A rustle of silk, the song of a sword unsheathed, the rhythmic clop of hooves on cobblestones … Period dramas take us back in time—to the good times, that is, and an escape to a past where we aren't asked to endure the absence of antibiotics, electric lights, or basic rights for most of the population; when people and clothing were beautiful (and had all of their teeth), no one stunk, and toileting practices are left to the imagination.

This month's challenge is a Matryoshka challenge, where you will choose a prompt set based on a level of difficulty, revealing one prompt at a time as you move through your fanwork. Prompts are based around common tropes found in period dramas. It is important to note, however, that your fanwork does not need to be a period piece itself. Any genre, topic, and approach to the prompts is welcome!

This month there is a special stamp available for nonwritten fanworks made using the Matryoshka prompts! This would include artwork, audio, link collections, playlists, videos, and multimedia fanworks. Writing is allowed but should also include one of these other types.

Note that, in the past, Matryoshka challenges required creators to request a prompt set from the moderators. You no longer need to do that! Period Drama prompts are now found on the challenge page. Select the difficulty level you want and click to open prompts one at a time as you work.

Thank you to Zdenka for this month's banner and stamps!

In order to receive a stamp for your fanwork, your response must be posted to the archive on or before 15 June 2025. For complete challenge guidelines, see the Challenges page on our website.

Mereth Aderthad Interview: Interview with JazTheBard by Maglor

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Have you ever noticed that Lúthien, Maeglin, and Arwen share names that mean "twilight child"? While Lúthien and Arwen might make sense, how does Maeglin factor in? For her Mereth Aderthad 2025 presentation, JazTheBard explores this connection, noting that while Tolkien was surely aware of it in his own work, "he probably wouldn't agree with the conclusions I'm drawing from it!" Maglor interviewed Jaz about her upcoming presentation, "Twilight, Child Of: Comparisons Between Tinúviel, Lómion, and Undómiel," her love of music (and musical plans for the presentation!), and how gender further complicates her conclusion.

You can read Maglor's interview with JazTheBard here.

Mereth Aderthad Interview: Interview with Savannah Horrell by Anérea

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The Hobbit is essentially the Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf told from the perspective of the thief: Bilbo Baggins. Although embroidered significantly beyond the poem that gave it its inspiration, that key plot element remains, along with other important connections to the Germanic literature that Tolkien loved. For the latest in our series of interviews of presenters for Mereth Aderthad 2025, Anérea spoke with Savannah Horrell about her upcoming presentation "By Guile Committed: Comparing Tolkien’s Thieves to Beowulf." Savannah notes important connections between Tolkien and Beowulf but observes that the two authors depict thieves quite differently, leading to works with very different tones and themes.

You can read Anérea's interview with Savannah here.

Mereth Aderthad Interview: Interview with Zhie by Shadow

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Although not a scientist himself, Tolkien cared deeply for accuracy in the sciences in his work. Uncovering the scientific roots or applying the sciences to the legendarium is one area of scholarly and fannish inquiry. Shadow spoke with Zhie about Zhie's upcoming Mereth Aderthad 2025 presentation, "How to Make a Star from a Tree: The Science of Telperion and Laurelin," about the rewards and challenges of approaching such a topic as a nonscientist and the unique role that fans have to play in Tolkien scholarship.

Listen to Shadow's interview with Zhie here or read the transcript of the interview here.

Mereth Aderthad 2025: Program Posted

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We are excited to offer a first look at the program for Mereth Aderthad 2025, our twentieth birthday event coming up on July 19, 2025! The day will feature twelve presentations of Tolkien scholarship, each accompanied by stories, poetry, performances, and art.

The program will continue to evolve as our creators work on their pieces for the event, and you can always find the most up-to-date program on the Mereth Aderthad 2025 page, but we're delighted to share the range of topics and fanworks by so many brilliant writers, researchers, artists, and performers!

9:00-9:15 Welcome!

9:15-9:45

  • "Cherished antagonist, despised protagonist - a defence of Elu Thingol" by Stella Getreuer-Kostrouch
  • "Elu's decision" by Idrils Scribe
  • "Of Thingol and the Silmaril" by Flora-lass
  • Featured art Grey by fish

9:45-10:15

  • "The Aromantic in Tolkien" by Shadow
  • "Unexpected Commonalities" by chrissystriped
  • Featured art A Spectrum by Silmalope

10:15-10:45

  • "The Design of Dragons and Doom of the Dwarves" by cloudyhymns
  • Written fanwork by bunn
  • Featured art The Dragons, the Earth and the Dwarves by Varda delle Stelle

10:45-11:15

  • "Gil-galad was an Elven King: Kingship and Personhood in the last High King of the Noldor" by Maglor
  • "Arisen" by Shadow
  • Featured art Banner of Stars by Kai

11:15-11:45

  • "Exile, Ruin and Resistance: Beleriand as Postcolonial Palimpsest" by Dr. Zara Ashkenazi-Khan
  • Story by cloudyhymns

11:45-12:15

  • "By Guile Committed: Comparing Tolkien’s Thieves to Beowulf" by Savannah Horrell
  • "Noble Thieves" by Dawn Felagund
  • Featured art by bunn

12:15-1:00 Lunch

1:00-1:30

  • "Mythmakers vs. the made myths: Exploring a reader’s levels of religious alienation and connection in works about and by J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis" by Acha Rezak (Quente)
  • "Great Stories" by Janeways
  • Song by Zdenka

1:30-2:00

  • "Love, Grief, and Alliterative Verse in Tolkien’s Legendarium" by Paul D. Deane
  • Poem by Zdenka

2:00-2:30

  • "Tolkien, Lunatic Physicists, and Abnegation" by Cynthia (Cindy) Gates a.k.a. pandemonium_213
  • "Lightborn" by Azh, Admirable Monster
  • Featured art by Grundy

2:30-3:00

  • "Twilight, Child Of: Comparisons Between Tinúviel, Lómion, and Undómiel" by JazTheBard
  • Story" by Maglor
  • Featured art Three twilight children for the elven-kings under the sky by sesame

3:00-3:30

  • "How To Make a Star From a Tree: The Science of Telperion and Laurelin" by Zhie
  • "Light of the World" by Shadow
  • Featured art Light of the Two Trees by Anérea

3:30-4:00

  • "'Kidnap Fam' and the Living Legendarium" by polutropos
  • "Lost Stars" by reese

If you'd like to join us, registration is free, and there are both in-person and virtual options. You can register for Mereth Aderthad 2025 here.