New Challenge: Bollywood
This month's challenge offers songs, films, and tropes from Bollywood, the world's largest film industry based out of India, as prompts for fanworks.
SWG News
Cultus Dispatches: Fandom Chocolate … or Authors Love Comments
Tolkien Fanfiction Survey data provides insight into how comments benefit authors and which authors are most impacted by a lack of comments, with a digression on authors' perspectives one-click feedback like kudos.
A Sense of History: Passing Ships
As Tolkien's characters in various texts gaze out to the sea, what do they see? What is brought by the ships coming out of the West?
Beta-Reader List Now Available
The beta-reader list and profiles have been moved into our new system and are available again.
New & Updated Fanworks
[Writing] No Time Have I by Flora-lass
A Silmarillion acrostic.
[Writing] I called it Fate that I should fail by AdmirableMonster
Nimruzimir, a natural philosopher recently out of his apprenticeship, hardly considers himself very important to anyone, least of all his colleagues. When his strange, prophetic fits bring him to the attention of the High Priest, however, he may find that his existence is less superfluous than…
[Writing] All of you by chrissystriped
Elrond and Celebrían celebrate their anniversary with their family.
[Writing] Lament for the Singer by daughterofshadows
A short thing about Maglor, death and grieving.
[Writing] Cosmological Poems of Arda by AaronAzrael
I would like to share my revelations of Tolkien's Universe in the form of narrative and emotional poems.
[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…
[Artwork] Map of Valinor by Aprilertuile
My newly drawn map of Aman, as complete as I could make it.
Current Challenge
Bollywood
Prompts this month are films, songs, and tropes from India's dazzling film industry, Bollywood. Read more ...
Random Challenge
Holiday Party
No matter if you're in the Northern or Southern hemisphere, it's a time of year to think about holidays. Whether you're bundling up in blankets or slipping a swimsuit into your suitcase, we invite you to an SWG holiday party! Read more ...
New in References
Fandom Chocolate … or Authors Love Comments by Dawn Walls-Thumma
[]Tolkien Fanfiction Survey data shows that authors view comments as driving their motivation to create fanfiction. However, perception of comments by authors is part of a larger shift in fandom around how and how often fans interact with each other.
Passing Ships by Simon J. Cook
[]The arrival and departure of ships across the Great Sea carries mythic significance for the peoples of Middle-earth. The image of ships crossing out of and back into a mysterious West appears as well in Beowulf and is alluded to in Tolkien's tower analogy in his lecture "Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics," where the tower allows those who climb it to observe the passage of the ships.
Fanfiction and the Serious Business of Writer's Craft by Dawn Walls-Thumma
[]Tolkien Fanfiction Survey data shows that while most authors self-identify as taking their craft seriously, a growing subset of authors may be pushing that norm.
Beyond the Silmarillion
[Writing] Staging a Battle by StarSpray
[]He and Diamond were visiting, though Pippin had been disappearing every afternoon, and taking Frodo and Elanor and most other lads and lasses in the neighborhood with him—though why they couldn’t use Pippin’s own pony, Sam couldn’t imagine.
[Writing] From whose bourn no traveller returns by losselen
[]So gathered they were to Bree, what lieutenants who could be spared, from their scattered watches west and east, for their chieftain had returned from his long sojourn in lands godless and mountains strange.
Aragorn returns from the South to tells his tales. Halbarad listens.
[Writing] Sand Sorcery by StarSpray
[]It is well known that Psamathos does not leave his cove. He does not like to get his feet wet, and prefers to spend his days dozing under the sun.
Around the World and Web
Fellowship of the Fics: Summer Stories 2024
Fellowship of the Fics offers four weeks of summer-themed prompts during the month of July.
Elrond Week 2024
Elrond Week is a fandom event dedicated to Elrond Peredhel that will run from July 10th to July 16th on Tumblr.
July challenge at tolkienshortfanworks posted
The tolkienshortfanworks challenge for July has been posted to the Dreamwidth community. The thematic challenge is: original character or unnamed canon character; the formal challenge: fixed length of multiple of 50 words. New participants welcome.
July 2024 Call for Papers and Proposals
Conferences and publications that have open calls for papers and proposals in July 2024.
Teitho June/July Challenge: Mentor
The June/July prompt for the Teitho challenge is "mentor" and invites fanworks about this relationship in Tolkien's works.
Sculptress by Alquien
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Chapter 1
When Mahtan found Nerdanel, a statue was emerging from the marble. He marveled at her skill; the hard unforgiving stone fell from her chisel as easily and smoothly as though she were carving freshly churned butter.
“Who gave you this commission, daughter?” he asked. “I do not recognize this person. Someone from your travels?”
“It is my son,” she replied dreamily. “My firstborn.”
“Ah, yes.” Mahtan knew that she had the gift of foresight as did many of the others but it had never manifested itself in this way before. He peered closely at the finely featured face and marveled at the unusual height. As he ran his hand along the statue's right arm and reached the statue's wrist, he sensed a flaw in the marble and frowned. It was very slight and he wondered if she had even noticed it, with the work entrancing her as it did.
“Do you approve, Atar?”
“Yes, he is truly well-shaped.” Mahtan noted that five other blocks of marble were arrayed in a loose semi-circle. A second block stood next to the first statue while three more were grouped very near each other. The fifth block at a distance, seeming slightly different from the other four. He frowned again, his eye trying to discern the exact difference he felt from it.
“What of these?” he asked. “Commissions you will work on after this one is finished?”
“No, Atar. I am taking no further commissions until all are complete. They are mine too.”
“I see.” He did see and he felt a great uneasiness stir in his heart. “Will you sup at the house tonight, daughter?”
“Perhaps,” she answered distractedly. “Is it family or do you host a guest?”
“It is my new student. Perhaps you should travel more often, if this is the quality of apprentice that you attract to us.”
“Fëanor,” she smiled as she tested the name. “Yes, he will rival you one day.”
“Indeed,” her father replied dryly. “Well, we shall see.”
Mahtan turned once more to the statue. It was her finest work and yet he felt slightly uneasy at the sight of all those marble blocks, waiting only for her chisel to release the spirit within.
“I will look for you then, daughter, and try – do try – not to be late.”
“I will not be late, Atar.” she replied. “Now go.”
Nerdanel watched her father leave her workshop and rubbed her face tiredly. She would leave with Fëanor one day but that was a long time in the future. She rested her hand against the cool marble and imagined that she felt it was as warm as life under her touch.
“Maitimo,” she whispered. “Maitimo.”
Chapter End Notes
Atar (Quenya): father
