New Challenge: Everyman
Create a fanwork about an ordinary character in the legendarium using a quote about an unnamed character as inspiration.
Founded in 2005, the Silmarillion Writers' Guild exists for discussions of and creative fanworks based on J.R.R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion and related texts. We are a positive-focused and open-minded space that welcomes fans from all over the world and with all levels of experience with Tolkien's works. Whether you are picking up Tolkien's books for the first time or have been a fan for decades, we welcome you to join us!
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 Challenge: Famous Last Words
For our March challenge, our moderators will assign you a famous last line to use as a prompt.
[Writing] a life freely given, a favor returned by skywardstruck
Finrod and Bëor stop for a while on the road to Nargothrond to rest. The bodies of the Secondborn often grow weary, and Finrod laments, massaging Bëor's back and renewing his beloved's vigor with the work of his hands. But Finrod has other burdens of his own, Bëor soon discovers, returning…
[Writing] dye me, nocturne by skywardstruck
Maglor without Maedhros, Daeron without Lúthien. Alone, they are nothing, but together, they can be something more.
Where do you turn, when you have no one else left?
Written for Tolkien Reverse Summer Bang 2023, featuring artwork by athlai.
[Writing] Til We're on the Other Side by StarSpray
It was only the second time Finwë had come out foraging with them, and of course this would happen—of course the Hunter would come, the Dark Rider on his steed with its terrible, heavy footfalls, and the deep-throated laughter that held no mirth, only malice.
In the dark…
[Writing] A Hundred Miles Through the Desert by StarSpray
“Come on.” Maedhros grabbed his hand and pulled him along down the path, both of them quickening their pace now, until the trees opened up into a wide meadow filled with flowers, bright yellow celandine and dandelions and sweet-scented pale chamomile mingling with cornflowers and irises. On…
[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] The Long Arm of the Law by Elrond's Library
Turgon cannot be above the law.
[Writing] Despair and Shadows by octopus_fool
Haleth leaves to find her brother, even though her father does not permit her to.
Everyman
Create a fanwork about an ordinary character in the legendarium using a quote about an unnamed character as inspiration. Read more ...
To Be Free
Use a fanwork to show a character working to achieve freedom. Read more ...
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.
[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.
[Writing] Why did Éowyn ask Faramir if he'd rather have a "woman of the race of Númenor"? by Quente
For most of my life, when reading Lord of the Rings, I read it through the perspective of Gandalf's words about Éowyn, that she'd spent years trapped as a caregiver, watching the realm she love fall from honor into disgrace.
But what if Éowyn was also a student of history?
…
Angbang Week 2026
Angbang Week is a tumblr event focusing on the relationship between Morgoth and Sauron, running from May 5-11, 2026
Gondor Week 2026
A Tumblr week event focusing on the history of the realm of Gondor.
Crablor Day
A day dedicated to everyone's favourite warcriminal crustacean - April 26, 2026
April/May Teitho Challenge
Teithio is running a prompt challenge around the theme of "heartbreak."
April Challenge Tolkien Short Fanworks
Tolkien Short Fanworks is running a challenge around the theme of "fools," "foolishness," or "being fooled."
I really loved this! I read it over and over.
I liked the archaic names (Angamando for Angband) which gave the piece the feel of extreme age. The stirring and poetic use of language ('provisions are gnawed bone-close', 'the miles-vast fire below the mountains') made me think of Beowolf.
Please more!
Thanks so much, Uvatha! I'm glad you enjoyed this enough to reread it.
I do endeavor to use Quenya names instead of Sindarin in any of my work that takes place during the Years of the Trees.
My (much longer) Draugluin story will have a chapter or two about this same time period, from quite another perspective, if I can get off my arse and write it.
Great Bauglir, I cannot believe I had not reviewed this! Actually, I suspect there are other Huinarium offering that I have read, liked a great deal, and made a mental note of "Leave Huin a note!" Blame it on my near-geriatric mind and its attention span of a gnat.
At any rate, these are outstanding. Each one. Like Uvatha, I read these over and over. Your prose is marvelous, and in an economy of words (and clearly, each word carefully chosen), you create powerful images and bring an original flare to the cataclysmic event.
Beautifully done!
Thank you for taking the time to comment, Pandë! And I can relate to the attention span thing.
One of the things I like about doing drabble series for the Tolkien_weekly challenges is that the forced brevity allows me to conceive of brief sketches of events, so it helps me sort of plot some things out in my 'verse without falling prey to my typical tendency to make a novella of a molehill. And yes, the words all do undergo a brutal selection, since my draft drabbles usually come in at closer to 150 words.
This was one of the first fics I have read on SWG, and one of the best fics I came across before and after that! Sorry I hadn't reviewed this earlier.
And it is also compulsively readable, as your other reviewers have said, but many of your works are like that (Melkian dialogues, Sundray, Gelmir).
Your fiction has a rare quality to it, and I say this with a quite a few years reading various fanfiction, not only Silmarillion.
On the side note, I have finally read Camus' Renegade and I actually found yours and his story to be a close match. But in their essence they are very different - more on this if I manage to post another comment on Gelmir - I don't know if its allowed to publish more than one review on the same story. If not, I will write you about it somewhere else.
Please, continue to write!
Thank you so much, Belegur! I've really appreciated your encouraging remarks.
"Please, continue to write!"
Admitedly I've not been writing much this year due to a few factors, but at least lack of ideas isn't one of them. I'm certainly not done with writing Tolkien fic by any means. More will come eventually. =D
(Re: Gelmir v. Renegade. Eee, I think it's so cool that my story caused someone to read Camus' story! Yes, it is possible to leave multiple reviews on a single story, but if you have a Livejournal please do feel free get in touch over there huinare.livejournal.com. Or at other places mentioned on my profile, but LJ is very discussion-conducive.)
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Comments on A Brief History of the Fall of Utumno
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