New Challenge: Epic 80s
This month's challenge features hundreds of fresh prompts from the bodacious decade of the 1980s.
SWG News
Cultus Dispatches: Communities Do Comment
Comment data from the SWG underscores community as an essential component to a robust commenting culture.
Instadrabbling Sessions for July, August, and September
Instadrabbling continues on the first Saturday of each month on our Discord server.
New Challenge: Scavenger Hunt
In this Matryoshka-with-a-twist, you will solve clues that point you to the challenge prompts.
New & Updated Fanworks
[Writing] Is it raining with you? by AdmirableMonster
In the last days of Númenor, two very different men meet in Umbar and fall in love.
(Please note that while this work is heavily inspired by Disco Elysium, no knowledge of the game is necessary to read the fic!)
[Writing] Nasyalossë by Lovimmy3365
Erestor lay up against a tree, brown washed to black in the wet of the snow. The black disc of the new moon sailed across the dark sky. Erestor wished it were gone. He had no need to look into dark eyes any longer.
He was dying.
(AKA Erestor unwittingly travels back in time to the…
[Writing] From That Rubble by StarSpray
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…
[Writing] Eä's Redemption by AaronAzrael
This is my new poetical attempt to add my own interpretation to Tolkien's Cosmology as to Eru's Creation and the Valar's minds and behind-the-scene providence reasons and mechanisms.. I often review Eä as part of our own world, just in another dimension, this is why I have always seriously…
[Writing] Wrensong and Roses by Isilme_among_the_stars
Concerned by his responses to the paraphernalia of healing, Fingon steals Maedhros from his room for an impromptu garden excursion. Maedhros battles with dark thoughts.
[Writing] The Mirror Crack'd by AdmirableMonster
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…
[Writing] Bon(e)fire by Fuin
On the night before the battle, Caranthir and his ally share thoughts about their peoples' traditions:
Burning bones ward off evil.
Current Challenge
Epic 80s
Create a fanwork using on of our righteous prompts based on popular culture from the 1980s. Read more ...
Random Challenge
Back to Nature
Create a fanwork that considers conflicts with nature--both overt and symbolic--and characters' relationships with that which is natural in their world. Read more ...
New in References
Communities Do Comment: Expanding the 3C's of Commenting with SWG Data by Dawn Walls-Thumma
Expanding on my 2018 article "Why People Don't Comment," comment data from the SWG underscores community as an essential component to a robust commenting culture.
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.
Featured Themed Collection
Beyond the Silmarillion
[Writing] Down the Long Years by Isilme_among_the_stars
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…
[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.
Around the World and Web
Tolkien Gen Week 2026
Tolkien Gen Week will run from July 6-12, 2026 to appreciate all of the incredible characters and relationships within Tolkien’s legendarium that fall under the broad category of “gen.”
Tolkien Disability Pride 2026
This Tumblr event focuses on ALL creative works focusing on disability in Tolkien's universe.
Tolkien Native Language Appreciation Fest 2026
A Tumblr event to celebrate the linguistic diversity of the Tolkien fandom.
Scribbles and Drabbles 2026
Scribbles & Drabbles is a fic and art exchange with a minimum word count of 100 words.
Fanworks Tagged with Drama
Fill The Night With Stories by Klose
A place to house my short ficlets as I write them, or the ones that I can't bring myself to post here as individual stories anyway. Most of these will just a couple of hundred words long.
#1 - "The Way That We Love" - Fingolfin/Anaire, very loosely based on theme of "Five Things Anairë Hates About Fingolfin". Written Dec'07.
#2 - "Inheritance" - a sort of missing moment story featuring Círdan and a very young Ereinion Gil-galad. Gen. Written Mar'10.
Lives Apart by Lyra
After the War of Wrath, Eärendil has a chance to meet his sons. The reunion doesn't quite go as expected.
Possibly AU, but your mileage may vary on that.
Half-brother in Blood, Full Brother in Heart by Alassante
The confrontation in Tirion between Fingolfin and Fëanor led to Fëanor being banned to Formenos.
Written for B2ME 2010: Ornisso challenged me from Formenos:
Create a story, poem, or artwork that responds to the following quote: "The only difference between me and a madman is that I'm not mad." -- Salvador Dali.
Down. Out. Up. by Himring
What I was not going to write, but did:
Down. What Maedhros thought as he jumped.
Out. Up. Fingon takes Maedhros home to Tirion after his reincarnation. Finarfin insists on confronting him. Told from different points of view (Fingon, Finarfin and, briefly, Maedhros).
Now illustrated by Alasse!
Uldor by Himring
This is the story of the unequal friendship between Maedhros and Uldor and its bitter end in betrayal and death, told from Uldor’s point of view.
It does not say anywhere that they were friends that I know of, but it seemed a reasonable explanation to me of what happened before Nirnaeth Arnoediad. Otherwise, wouldn’t the sons of Feanor have to have been a bit slow on the uptake or the sons of Ulfang fiendishly clever?
Like the rest of the series, this is, strictly speaking, Maedhros/Fingon, but it is possible to ignore that aspect of it (Uldor himself never guesses), so I’m not marking it.
This story has been nominated for the MEFAs 2010 by Angelica and won Third Place in Races: Cross-Cultural: General. Thank you very much to Angelica and to everyone who reviewed it for the MEFAs!
Now illustrated by the wonderful Alasse:
Tempering the Madness by Alassante
Celebrimbor attempts to reason with his father
Written for 2010 B2ME Challenge - En garde! This challenge is all about weapons and weaponry. Write a story about a character's chosen weapon, or learning how to use a weapon. Is the character a skilled fighter, or is learning to wield a weapon a bit of a struggle for him or her?
A Waiting Game by Elfique
Love, no matter how wicked, always finds a way.
A slightly strange something I wrote for Jan/Feb's ALEC 'Forbidden Love' theme.
Heavy The Crown by downtide
Maedhros, recently returned from his ordeal on Thangorodrim, abdicates the crown, but it's not only a new king he makes on this day.
Slightly slashy.
On Cold Thangorodrim by downtide
The captivity of Maedhros on Thangorodrim, and his subsequent rescue by Fingon. This is actually part of my modern AU - the elves are living in the modern world and the events in Middle Earth are told as a flashback.
Warnings for rape/non-con, torture.
Babes In The Wood by downtide
After the Battle of Sirion, the children Elured and Elurin are taken to the forest and abandoned. The guilt weighs heavy on Maedhros, and he cannot rest until he finds them.
Rated teens for general mature themes, and for violence. Character deaths: those of Celegorm, Caranthir and Curufin are referred to and the deaths of Elured and Elurin implied.
Touch of a Vanished Hand by elfscribe
When Elendil and his group of Númenórean refugees wash up on Lindon's shores, Elrond's past comes back to haunt him.
MEFA 2010 First Place winner:Times, Second & Early Third Age
Penance by SurgicalSteel
Written in honor of Pandemonium's birthday - during the siege of Barad-dur, a surgeon deals with illness and injury from the various forces in place.
Thrall No More by Elfique
Set after the War of Wrath. The elven thralls Morgoth used for his own devices are freed, in one a soldier finds something he did not expect, something which he believed he would never see again.
The Embalmer's Apprentice by Lyra
Faced with the choice between execution or working on the preservation of dead people, young Azruhâr finds himself drawn into an increasingly political struggle between faith and power, tradition and new ideas - and a journey beyond his wildest fears and dreams.
When You Smile by Keiliss
A life shadowed by the past, a love that can never be.
MEFA 2009: Genres: Character Study: The Silmarillion, Honorable Mention
Hidden Within by Keiliss
Past meets present; two elves and a sword, words of power sung under starlight.
MEFA 2009: Genres: Character Study: Friendship, First Place
Mahtan's Apprentice by WendWriter
Nerdanel is in love with a Noldor prince with a reputation for being sullen at best, difficult at worst. Whatever does she see in him? And how will Mahtan get along with him?
Wounded by WendWriter
When little Elrond asks Maglor to play a game that reminds him of his part in the Kinslayings, how does he deal with it?
The House That Fëanor Built by WendWriter
Nerdanel finds herself drawn back to Formenos. There she finds something unexpected. Written for the December challenge, Lost Letters.
The Dance of Flute and Harp by Amaranth
Maglor and Tinfang Gelion (Warble). Two great minstrels, elves of like mind and skill; yet so very different. A conflict and the unique, captivating way those two masters of their art deal with it. Set sometime between 1700-1900 Second Age. Oh, and my Tinfang has no beard!
The Longest Night by Dawn Felagund
In the depths of a bitter winter, Finrod Felagund receives an invitation from Bëor to attend a strange midwinter festival in honor of the longest night of the year. Written for the 2009 Yule Fic Exchange on Many Paths to Tread.
The Greatest of Gifts by Michiru
A double-study pair of vignettes concerning Maglor, who isn't quite so noble as we would like him to be.
Foundlings by Aearwen2
The untold story of what happened to Dior's sons during and after the sack of Menegroth. NOW COMPLETE.
