Cultus Dispatches: Revelations from Marquette's Fanzine Dataset
In September 2026, Marquette University released a dataset about their Tolkien fanzine collection. Analysis of the data reveals what these fanzines contained and show how pre-internet Tolkien fandom responded to the publication of "The Silmarillion."
Comment by Himring for Lúthien Tinúviel, Part 1
Great to see the first part of your bio on Luthien!
Well done! I like the points you are making here and the quotations you picked.
Re: Comment by Himring for Lúthien Tinúviel, Part 1
Thanks so much for reading and letting me know, Himring! I hope the next part is satisfying. This one has been harder than I ever expected!
Comment by Lilith for Lúthien Tinúviel, Part 1
Terrific worK on a very challenging topic.
Re: Comment by Lilith for Lúthien Tinúviel, Part 1
Oh. ooops! I forgot that I am not getting notifications of comments these days! Sorry I did not thank you. It took a lot out of me. I was pretty much warming up to the topic and no longer being totally neurotic about it by the time I got part one done. Now I have to get back in saddle and see where I find myself within part 2! Thanks so much for the support!
Comment by Himring for Lúthien Tinúviel, Part 2
I like this bio and your thoughts on Luthien's character!
And that extended trailer is fun.
(Such hard work, a three-parter like this--thank you for doing it and sharing it!)
Re: Comment by Himring for Lúthien Tinúviel, Part 2
Thank you so much for reading it. You are so kind. Despite all my drama, I have enjoyed every minute of it! (Great story!)
Comment by IgnobleBard for Lúthien Tinúviel (1)
You really outdid yourself on this one. This story is so fragmented and complicated it's s difficult to detail But you managed it beautifully. Ive always loved Huan with his talking and prophesies and wolf killing. But, of course, Luthien is the star of the tale. I regret that Tolkien pulled back from the magical, fairytale elements in his published writings. I like that aspect.
I always enjoy the sources you pull for these bios and the various elements of the story you give me new perspectives on.
Re: Comment by IgnobleBard for Lúthien Tinúviel (1)
Thank you so much! I am so glad you enjoyed it. Thank you also for copy checking various drafts. The length of it seemed overwhelming at times.
<i>I regret that Tolkien pulled back from the magical, fairytale elements in his published writings. I like that aspect.</i>
Those are unique. I would have liked a little more internal point of view and perhaps more dialogue. But honestly, if he'd have written it in my favorite style it would have been an epic novel. It's a great story and the more I read its component parts, the more character depth one sees in it. Even in our favorite dog! I am really happy I had the chance to write it.
Are you there for me if I decide to write Beren? Then I would have full set. Already have Thingol and Melian.
Comment by IgnobleBard for Lúthien Tinúviel (2)
Am I there for you? Always! I can't wait to read about Beren and the haunted forest.
And isn't the Beren and Luthien story an epic novel now? Christopher Tolkien published it fairly recently, right?
Re: Comment by IgnobleBard for Lúthien Tinúviel (2)
I wonder if anyone has written fanfic with that!
Beren and Luthien is like a History of Middle-earth book except it covers only one subject and is not definitive in that case--very partial. Cherry picks items to include. It is required reading for me, but I would not highly recommend it for others--too watered-down for hardcore geeks and too nit-picky to be a popular read. And never by any stretch of the imagination is it novelistic. It is not organized like Children of Hurin, which does more or less read like a novel. I liked the Beren and Luthien book because it was fun to follow Christopher Tolkien's lead and see what he might include and where. I have been told the illustrations are good but I cannot see them. Too faded and desaturated for my failing eyesight. (I did not like that style when I was fully sighted! Give me some color and definition, please!)
Comment by IgnobleBard for Lúthien Tinúviel (3)
Beren and Luthien would have been the story to novelise, what a missed opportunity.
If you ever run across a Beren in the haunted forest fanfic please let me know. I'd love to read it.
i love book illustrations that look like they were done in the old days (which goes back a ways at my age), but I don't like when they look faded. I'm a fan of color too.
Re: Comment by IgnobleBard for Lúthien Tinúviel (3)
You would be a good person to write one!
Comment by Lilith for Lúthien Tinúviel, Part 3
I'm commenting on this one, though I might comment on any number of others. I remember being very grateful because of what I had been writing at the time that you were completing this particular bio. I think, for that story, I read this one, Celebrimbor's, Thingol's, Galadriel, Huan, and more, simply to be sure I was on the right track to my own apostacy. If I have a grasp on any of those characters, it is due in part to you. If I don't, which I may not, I may have veered closer to the correct direction as a result.
These are informative, amazingly well researched, entertaining and very clearly written. They are definitely a labor of love and I appreciate them and you greatly.
Re: Comment by Lilith for Lúthien Tinúviel, Part 3
That is very, very kind of you. That's exactly how we originally conceptualized that they might be used. To enable writers to do their creative stuff! Apostacy is more fun when it has some seeds in canon! Right?