The year was 2006, and the Tolkien fanfiction fandom was fading. The films had been out of theaters for over a year at this point, and there was a noticeable decline in activity in many fan communities and archives. Back to Middle-earth Month originated out of a desire to keep the fandom alive and retain some of that original sense of excitement from the years that brought an annual film release.
Back to Middle-earth Month—or B2MeM, as it would be called—started casually, as a prompt posted on LiveJournal. The originator of the idea remains unknown. Several individuals and fandom groups picked up on the challenge and promoted it, including the SWG. In the decades to follow, B2MeM would become a large event, involving intricate challenges and hundreds of participants, but at this point in its history, it was a fairly straightforward plea to continue posting about Middle-earth, to not lose the love and excitement for Tolkien's world in the wake of the films' conclusion.
Links
Archivist's Notes
Progress: B2MeM 2006 was a minor event on the SWG and did not even have its own webpage. Collection of history about the event is considered complete unless new details emerge.
Given the scope of future B2MeM events, the first was humble in comparison. The following—copied from the originator of the idea's LiveJournal—was posted in the March 2006 newsletter:
March is Back to Middle-earth Month, and we are going to join the many other groups and individuals who are participating...but with a Silmarillion approach, of course!
March 2006: Back to Middle-Earth Month
Miss the golden days of the Tolkien fandom? Get homesick for Middle-Earth?
Then this is for you!You don't need to sign up anywhere to participate. But if you see this on your friends-page and like the idea, please post this text to your LJ to spread the word.
How to participate:
1. Pick a day of the week (or more than one) on which you resolve to always post something Tolkien-related in March, and let your friends-list know.
2. Go back and read your favourite chapters from the book, or watch the LotR movies again. Let the beauty of Tolkien's work inspire you. And then, share the love.
3. Start your subject line with (B2MEM) when you post, and use a "b2mem" tag. This'll make it easy to spot your B2MEM-entries.
No matter if you just ramble about your undying love for Tolkien's world, picspam us, post wallpapers, icons, or write fan fic / create fan art, the plan is to get as many Tolkien-related entries on our friends-pages as possible throughout March.
Sounds good? We've been there, let's go back again!
There was no formal collection of B2MeM 2006 fanworks on the SWG. The SWG's archive had not yet opened—it would do so three months later. Participants posted to their own journals and not to SWG spaces, and there was no round-up of B2MeM entries the following month.
However, the idea of keeping energy and interest in Tolkien high stuck, and the SWG would participate in many and increasingly elaborate B2MeM events to come.
