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!
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.
Feanor and Fingolfin, from their youth to their fall.
"I will do this gladly," Fingolfin said, whispering into Feanor's mouth, grasping for reasons and sense. "Gladly, if it will bring peace between us. If it will end the madness."
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.
The thing about forgiveness, he thought, was that it was so much easier when the object of it was far away—or dead. It was so much easier to let it all go when those responsible were far away and unable to do any more harm.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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…
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.
Cheers Maglor! It seems that the years of waiting, debating the possible treason of Morgoth turned Maglor - very reasonably so - very cynical. No better way to vent this by writing his master piece, the Noldolantë.
Thanks for the feedback :) I must agree I tend to view Maglor as always having been a bit cynical, watching and analysing how people works to understand them when he later writes songs and stuff. he is, in the back of my mind, the most cyical of the lot...possibly with maedhros having the most 'honourable' and 'romantic' view of people...
I enjoyed your 'politically incorrect' Maglor very much: condescending towards Fingon ("the boy"), like a colonial master about the Sindar ("the local tribes"), exploitative about sex, excessively fond of hard drinks, manipulative and cynical about his works ("a pretence of regret") and deliberately unpleasant to Maedhros about the right hand. Yet behind all this he's overwhelmed with guilt at what he did and at what he didn't do (rescue Maedhros) and trying to work it out. When you mention the Noldolantë everything falls into place.
Thank you! I am glad you enjoyed him! :) I have to admit I loved writing him, he appeals to my cynical side of things and I would not be suprised if he pops up agian sometime. And lets be honest writing someone that politically incorrect is just pure fun, he can say anything!
I should've known that alcohol + the Noldor = a very explosive result ;)
Jokes aside, I loved it. It's classy, well-written and very Feanorian'ish (does such a word exist anyway?). You've nailed them here. Kudos, and thank you.
I had been discussing the Feanorians with keiliss the whole day and the idea of Maglor and vodka was born... after that I just had to write it :)
I also admit that much as I love the feanorians (and I do) I ted to view them as rather unpleasant when they want to be (like maglor does at this time)
It's a refreshing twist to see Maglor as the bitter, cynical one post-Thangorodrim. This was a most insightful look at these two - I love your style, it flows so easily. The dialogue is wonderful, as well - "A pretence of regret" - phwoar!
Maglor shrugged. “You take what you can get in this life, male or female. They are equally able to spread their legs or open their mouths.”
Woof, Mags! He's certainly a jaded one. The nuances that run throughout this short piece makes it so evocative, telling so much with so few words.
This is really well done - loved Maglor's last line. Great work!
Fabulous dialogue. It was nice to see Maglor as the cynical one, for once, and I liked that he was regretful without being too mopey - too often it seems that he's crying and passing out hugs. Yours was far more interesting.
This is a different but plausible view of Maglor. Most people who had to deal with what they did during those early years, especially with Maedhros' captivity, would believably turn that way more or less. And the rather edgy "bonding" moment is so Feanorian! They could be like that if and when they want to, I imagine.
I love tales of not wimpy!Maglor. It's a very interesting story, besides that; I don't think I ever came across a story where the Fingon-Maedhros dynamic was portrayed as only one-sided. It's interesting. Anyway, lovely dialogue and characterization.
Comments on Vodka
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.