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: Stars Create a fanwork using star-themed prompts presented in a bingo board format.
Cultus Dispatches: Trends in Fandom Entry Year The films inspired a lot of fanfiction, yes, but exactly how fanfiction authors interacted with them predicts who remains in the fandom for long durations.
Character of the Month: Marach There are few details in the texts about Marach, but he is noteworthy for his allegiances and his descendants, who would become pivotal to the history of Middle-earth and the eventual defeat of Morgoth and Sauron.
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…
When uneasy dreams bring him back into Beleriand, Daeron finds a pair of twins who have lost their home, and an enemy who has lost himself. The Shadow's reach is growing ever longer, and if they are to survive, they must do it together.
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
Stars
Construct a fanwork using star-themed prompts in a bingo card format. Read more ...
Random Challenge
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. Read more ...
Across three surveys and ten years, the Tolkien Fanfiction Survey has document when authors began writing. These data reveal trends in how film promotions, the films themselves, the books, and other historical contexts have influenced not only who writes but how long they stay.
There are few details in the texts about Marach, but he is noteworthy for his allegiances and his descendants, who would become pivotal to the history of Middle-earth and the eventual defeat of Morgoth and Sauron.
A dissenting voice in Marach's alliance with the Elves of Beleriand, Amlach experiences a change of mind after a mysterious twist in the story reorients his priorities toward enmity with Morgoth.
Erestor finds himself thrust into adventure when Elrond requests his company escorting Arwen to Minas Tirith after the War of the Ring is won. All too aware of the chronic illness that has bound his friend to Rivendell for the past several centuries, Glorfindel has some concerns. Erestor, aware…
The Silmarillion Writers' Guild is more than just an archive--we are a community! If you enjoy a fanwork or enjoy a creator's work, please consider letting them know in a comment.
Thank you so much! I feel like, if one were an in-universe child in Arda, and the Silmarillion stories are something like a mix between your culture's epics and their holy texts, there are going to be those who's strongest reaction is "but that's not fair!' and want to go back and save everyone.
Oh, this is beautiful! I love the scene, and Gilraen's temper and need to fix the things that unfortunately couldn't be fixed, and how she reasoned with her brother. Wonderfully written, heart-warming and touching story! Thank you :)
Thank you so much, so glad you enjoyed. "Needing to fix things that couldn't be fixed": yes, my reaction to this prompt was a bit "meta"--in some ways this impulse lies behind so much great SWG writing! But I ended up seeing it through the eyes of one who hears these stories, in-universe.
You're welcome! So glad you enjoyed. I think that often we have some of our most pure reactions to stories when we were children: what made us sad, what we saw as unfair; because we haven't become inured to the world and its injustices.
In LOTR, I love the way characters like Aragorn access memories of the First Age through song, through stories & lays; then when you read the Silmarillion, it becomes like a fascinating geology of layers underneath the Third Age.
And I'm glad you liked the dynamic between girl and father; I drew on certain memories of being read to, as a kid.
What an original perspective to discuss subcreation, free will, Aragorn's relation with his kids and what the stories of the Elder Days mean to later people in Middle-earth.
Thank you so much! Aragorn would have an especially poignant, lived relationship to this question, which is woven throughout the early Silm chapters: why Morgoth, and in his turn, why Sauron?
Comments on In the Beginning
The Silmarillion Writers' Guild is more than just an archive--we are a community! If you enjoy a fanwork or enjoy a creator's work, please consider letting them know in a comment.