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.
Forging Gold and Sleeping Dragon by Cirdan
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Forging Gold and Sleeping Dragon
Forging Gold came to visit Sleeping Dragon the day after the Imperial Uncle had left. Of course, by then, Sleeping Dragon had also returned.
"Welcome," Sleeping Dragon said with a slight smile. "I'm afraid that you've just missed meeting royalty. The Imperial Uncle came to pay me a visit. Our friend met him upon the mountain as he left, and they exchanged some words. Unfortunately, I was away and have only now just returned, so I also missed him."
Forging Gold laughed. "How unfortunate indeed. But I'm afraid that royalty does not impress me."
"I didn't think so." Sleeping Dragon had long suspected Forging Gold of being more than the usual eccentric Taoist.
Forging Gold sipped quietly on his tea and then asked, "What did he want with you?"
"Can you not guess?"
"Men's minds are easy to read." Was it any wonder that Sleeping Dragon suspected Forging Gold of being something other than a Man? Forging Gold spoke, "Let me guess then. Someone must have recommended you to him. His battle with the usurper is going badly, and he seeks to recruit men of genius to aid his cause. Can there be any doubt that this is his intention?"
Sleeping Dragon laughed. "My thoughts are the same as yours. I believe that was his goal as well."
"And what will you do? The land is in turmoil, and the Imperial Uncle seeks to set things right again." Forging Gold's eyes flashed like stars for a moment. It seemed to Sleeping Dragon that he could read his fate in that short moment.
"I have read the stars, and I believe that the Imperial Uncle's attempts to set the kingdom to peace are valiant but futile." Sleeping Dragon set his fan of crane feathers down beside him. "If I may inquire, what is your opinion of the situation?"
Forging Gold smiled ruefully. "Surely you are asking me for the future if you speak so openly." He looked distant for a moment then returned to the conversation. "You are correct in your reading of the skies."
Sleeping Dragon nodded and thanked his guest for his esteemed insight.
Soon after the Imperial Uncle's second visit, Forging Gold again came to see Sleeping Dragon. The timing was uncanny but typical of Forging Gold. After they'd exchanged some pleasantries, Sleeping Dragon showed Forging Gold the letter that the Imperial Uncle had written.
Forging Gold nodded. "What is your view of the letter?"
"I intended to ask you the same!" Sleeping Dragon chuckled but then said seriously, "He sounds sincere in his desire to restore the kingdom and bring peace to the people."
Forging Gold raised one fine eyebrow. "Are you actually tempted to aid the Imperial Uncle in his task?"
Sleeping Dragon sighed. "History is cyclical. A country long divided will unite, and a country long united will divide. I was born at this tumultuous time of the country's decline, but I desire only to be a common tiller of the soil. To go about and speak with friends of philosophical matters appeals to me more than the glory of war."
"Then why show me the letter at all?" asked Forging Gold.
Sleeping Dragon looked to the window. The cluster of stars shone brightly, as they always seemed to when Forging Gold visited. He realized that he had to be honest to Forging Gold's inquiry.
"A person can be taught to say the 'right' things," Sleeping Dragon said after a while. "Learned men will know how to phrase their ambitions such that they seem noble despite ulterior motives. Perhaps I need to meet the Imperial Uncle to know if he is, indeed, sincere."
"Then you are tempted," Forging Gold said triumphantly. "Are you sure you want to know? Twice already you have avoided him, by chance it would seem, but chance is nothing but fate in another guise. The third visit may be your undoing."
To that, Sleeping Dragon had no answer.
On the night that the Imperial Uncle at last convinced Sleeping Dragon to be his military advisor, Forging Gold again came to see Sleeping Dragon.
"Surely this is a dream," Sleeping Dragon said, "for I fell asleep after long hours of speech with the Imperial Uncle."
Forging Gold shrugged. "A dream or a memory or a vision of the future. But I did not come to discuss such philosophy with you. You have made your decision?"
Sleeping Dragon nodded. "I have. If he were a lesser man, I would not follow him, but he is sincere and has a good heart. Such a lord is rare."
"But you have seen the skies. The kingdom will fall, and your endeavors will be in vain." Forging Gold made no attempt to lighten the truth of fate.
After a time, Sleeping Dragon answered, "I have read the stars. There is a chance that the Imperial Uncle will succeed."
"A small chance," Forging Gold said dismissively. Sleeping Dragon knew that he was not lying. The chance was almost miniscule.
"Nevertheless, I will use what small talents were granted to me to aid the Imperial Uncle," Sleeping Dragon said. "The road must be trod. He is genuine in his purpose, and for that, I will toil like the oxen toil in order to help him achieve his goal."
"And so you will leave the peace of your secluded mountain dwelling," Forging Gold said.
Sleeping Dragon nodded. "I will. How can I live comfortably when I know that such a great man is set on helping the people?"
Now, it was Forging Gold's turn to become thoughtful. He said in wistful voice, "Yes, I suppose that's the reason we left too. Regardless of what others might say, we came to Middle-earth to aid our kin."
"The wrongs that I will do shall shorten my life, and the wrongs that you did seems to have lengthened yours."
"Perhaps, then, my wrongs have already been repaid." Forging Gold smiled. His eyes were intensely bright, and there seemed to be a light surrounding him. "I will give this to you," Forging Gold said, handing some texts to Sleeping Dragon. "Long shall your road be, but perhaps this will help you. It will teach you to change the winds so that they might blow in your favor."
Sleeping Dragon refused the gift, but Forging Gold insisted. Then Forging Gold became still brighter until, at last, he reached enlightenment and disappeared entirely from this world.
Sleeping Dragon awakened to find the texts beside him. The Imperial Uncle was still sleeping. Sleeping Dragon rose quietly so as to not wake him and then went out to the gardens. In the Heavens, one star in particular shone brightest, and Sleeping Dragon was certain that it was Forging Gold's guiding star.
Chapter End Notes
Notes: Forging Gold is Maglor. Sleeping Dragon is Zhuge Kongming. And this takes place when Liu Bei visits Kongming three times to try to recruit him.
