Founded in 2005, the Silmarillion Writers' Guild exists for discussions of and creative fanworks based on J.R.R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion and related texts. We are a positive-focused and open-minded space that welcomes fans from all over the world and with all levels of experience with Tolkien's works. Whether you are picking up Tolkien's books for the first time or have been a fan for decades, we welcome you to join us!
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.
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.
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…
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…
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 ...
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Subscribe to the SWG Newsletter
Comments
The Silmarillion Writers' Guild is more than just an archive--we are a community! If you enjoy a fanwork or enjoy a creator's work, please consider letting them know in a comment.
No wonder Elrond was reluctant to say yes. After all, he suspected what might happen if his demon-imp (LOL!) woke up.
There are many things I already love about this story, including all the glimpses at the times after the War of the Ring and at the story of Laurefin's and Melamire's family.
I'm very much looking forward to reading more :) Thank you!
I'm glad you enjoyed just this first chapter, Binka. I had a blast writing the story as a whole so just wait...
And thanks so very much for the comments and compliments. It's very generous of you considering, uh, that Gilfanon and crew took time away from my beta-work!
You won't have to wait long. I'll put up the remaining chapters over the next week or so. I admit that I just let my imagination go wild. And hey, who knows what Tol Eressëa and Aman were really like?
I anticipate revisiting that scene on the beach in far more detail at some point in my future writing.
This is one of the most hilarious, and inspirational at the same time, stories I've read, honestly. I haven't laughed as hard for a long time. I could almost see Elrond's shocked face when he noticed Cemenolor's incomplete garment. I giggled at this: Woods and meadows, villages and farms, all flew past Laurefin, Elrond and their hairy knees (...), and there were of course loads and loads more of such funny lines. Most of all, I LOVE (!!!) Melamire's idea of keeping the deer from destroying the gardens in Imladris. I fell from my chair! And even more so, I imagined Melian in her efforts to establish the famous Girdle, LMAO!!! (Not to mention that I have a small idea for another small, comic addition to your story. :D Which may find its way to your inbox some time next week).
Another comic! Oh, good, good, good! Loved the first one. :^)
I'm glad you're enjoying this! And hang on to your hat. There's more to come. Also, I was off a bit regarding Mablung's appearance. He'll arrive on the scene in Chapter 4.
Thanks a million, Robinka, for reading and commenting both.
I'll return to reviewing later on because now all coherent thoughts are chased away by the stunning image of Mablung, shirtless, bare-footed and in a kilt............................................
"Stars' mercy, Erestor! Are you trying to kill me?"
Well, I thought the same, almost that is, without "Erestor", hehehe. That line is a hoot! I actually think that Erestor stole the show in this chapter. Also, I find Istyanis Lenwindil most intriguing :) I'm certain you know why.
Then, the next part, oh man! What a match! :D Those scenes nearly burst out from the screen with energy. Elrond using deep arts to heal his injury had a somewhat disturbing touch to it.
Loved the mentions of Samaril and Melamire, especially that how she managed to escape from her father. And did I mention I loved Mablung...?
Erestor definitely stole the show. He handily did so while I was in the midst of writing this chapter! I'm glad the hurling match worked! I know next to nothing about hurling, but I tapped into my love of ice hockey in an attempt to capture the excitement of the game.
Re: Sámaril and Mélamírë -- those are bits of spoilers, but hopefully not too egregious. Daddy Dearest wasn't there for her escape; he was off wrecking havoc in Eriador, and had entrusted her to one of his captains who interpreted the orders he was given in his own way. Needless to say, the escape was quite unexpected, even from her part.
You might have mentioned that you loved Mablung. :^D
Thanks so much for reading and for commenting, Binka!
Awesome! I love how you poke fun at the Vanyar -- they appear a mixture of cheap (even trashy) and rich and exotic at the same time. But, under those layers of face powder and diplomacy there are old rifts that aren't easily disregarded.
And that was the entrance!
Great stuff!
PS. I'm so going to nominate this for this year's MEFAs if only I could figure out how to do it with their new website.
First, Gilfanon with a Taniquetil-wig must have provided a hilarious view, a blatant provocation and a cathartic, sobering message too, as he was kind to explain later. I loved how he commented the events at the party, by the way, and his remark about women was priceless (*bows deeply*). One wise elf he is!
Also, I'm immensely intrigued by what Elrond related Laurefin concerning Sauron (exchaning letters and sharing a glass of whisky with Bilbo!). Most interesting ideas! :)
This was an awesome, very entertaining read in every aspect. Thank you tons for sharing!
Hi Pande, I'm reposting my Mefa review here at the source:
This sequel to Pandemonium's fantastic "Flame of the Desert," is a marvelous tongue-in-cheek romp of a story in which Gilfanon of the House of One Hundred Chimneys once again combats the ennui of living in paradise by throwing an outrageous party, as only Pande could imagine it. So many fun details here: fashionable lays about violets,["Elrond had not imagined that one hundred and forty-four lengthy lays could be written about a single type of flower, but there it was."]a display of hairy knees,[“leave it to Laurefin to have good leg hair,”]not to mention discovering what elves wear under their kilts, a wild game of ohta paliso - rather like a vicious game of field hockey, pompous Vanyarin ambassadors with mile-high wigs, musical monkeys, bagpipes [“an invention of Melkor”] and a lewdly named rose, not to mention Gilfanon’s unforgettable entrance that causes a veritable donnybrook.
Pandë employs such vivid details that reading one of her stories is like a feast for the senses. In "A Rose" she entertains us with gilded carriages and fanciful chimneys, fragrant flowers and pungent athletes, effervescent punch, plates of delectable delicacies, gaudy blouses, and wild wigs. I quite enjoyed Gilfanon’s skewering of the pretentious and snobbish Lord Rilyazin, blessed be his dooms, and his entourage of Vanyarins. I certainly recommend this story for its wit, creativity, and Elrond and Glorfindel in kilts. Who could ask for more?
This is a real Laugh Out Loud piece, without doubt, but crammed with detailed insight into the life of the elves in Aman after all the battles have been won and all the foes defeated. What would life in paradise be without a little spark of joy, without people ready to challenge and provoke? The extremes Gilfanon goes to in order to entertain and shock people who, as immortals, must have seen most things, are just hilarious and must surely threaten the peace of Valinor. The kilt fashion, the Vanyarin hairstyles (I'll never ever forget the model of Taniquetil with wired eagles on Gilfanon's head), the hurling match, the rudely named rose bush variety, Glorfindel's hairy knees, they are all a giant riot framing the deep conflict between two very different groups of people: the ones that lived a sheltered, immutable life after the Darkening (and therefore never changed or, worse still, became entrenched and intolerant in their customs) and those who had to adapt to the harshness of Middle-earth and recurring war to ensure their own survival.
As imaginative as "Flame of the Desert" (of which "A Rose" is loosely a sequel), this story is what watching a colourful Valinor through a shattered distorting glass must feel like.
Aaaah, I've had this tab open since Sunday in the wake of a glorious Elrond fic rec post, given current life circumstances haven't been able to get to my computer since then, but THIS IS DELIGHTFUL. I love your Elrond very much, and very delighted to see Mélamírë here as well. And Zopyrus and I were literally JUST speculating about the possibility of Elves surfing, so this was very fitting in that regard too! :D Looking forward to reading the rest at some point soon...
And a very belated but nonetheless DELIGHTED thank you for reading this! One of these years, I'd like to follow the 3 fellahs to the slopes of Taniquetil. Maybe there will be a weird Valar-encounter there, the Pandë!verse Valar being more akin to benign forms of Lovecraftian creatures than thinly disguised saints. :^D
My favorite line, by far, was: "So it was that Elrond — wise Elrond, healer Elrond, kind as summer Elrond — hauled off and slammed his fist into Rilyazin's powdered jaw."
Haha! This was definitely fun to read, and had a lot of interesting things going on under the surface. I read this out of order from your other stories, so I might have to come re-read it once I've caught up...
I'm fascinated by the idea that mortality = wild type gene sequence and that this can be altered via the reincarnation process. It's a neat concept, and with very interesting (and horrifying) implications!
Thanks so much, Athrabeth, for jumping into this wild romp in the Pandë!verse — and out of order even! :^D I have to confess that writing in Elrond's POV intimidates me, in part because he is such an iconic character (and I wanted to show that he is not so staid in this story and in Flame of the Desert) and in part because other writers have portrayed him so well, far better than I have ever done. However, no guts, no glory, I guess.
The Pandë!verse is informed strongly by science (my own bias and counterpoint to Tolkien's rejection of technological progress). A few years ago, a little group of us were yammering about unions between the Firstborn and mortal Men (I do not use the phrase "elves and humans" because elves *are* humans) and Gandalf's Apprentice pointed out that it seemed like Dior, Elwing, and Eärendil might have matured at a rate closer to mortals than elves. She based this on chronologies (in the HoMe, I think) which noted that Dior wed Nimloth when he was in his 20s/30s. Eärendil and Elwing were of similar age when they married. If one is to put stock into elven aging as depicted in Laws and Customs of the Eldar (for what that is worth), then these folks married at a younger age than Elves, suggesting a more rapid maturation. Of course, Tolkien has a footnote that contradicts his aging scheme depicted in LaCe but there you go. At any rate, that made us conclude that mortality was the "default" setting, unless otherwise altered. I just twisted that a bit more. :^)
Thanks again and my many-fold apologies for not replying sooner. Your reviews are lovely, lovely gifts!
This story made me laugh plenty of times, especially Gilfanon's wig. That crowning glory, or possibly horror, sounds like the french court wigs at their worst squared. The eagles on wires just pushed it over the top.
Does Ingwe really wear that? How does anyone keep from laughing and why does he put up with the monstrosity? I hope he never has to wear it but on the most formal occasions. It sounds like an instant headache hat.
I know it's gauche to laugh at one's own work, but dang...Gilfanon slays me. YES! I was definitely inspired by the French court wigs of the mid-18th century. I don't think anyone dare laugh at Ingwë's elaborate wig, but I think you're right - he probably only wears it during formal occasions when he must appear grand and a bit intimidating.
Thanks so much for having a read and commenting! My apologies for the tardy reply.
This story is ... delightful! It manages to be both lighthearted and deep at the same time.
The Lays of the Violet -- haha! Wherever did you get the inspiration for this? Obviously from some foul torture chamber of Angband cough cough Taruithorn cough, but one wonders.
Hiya, maeglin! Thanks so much, and I'm delighted that you found this romp delightful. I must admit I enjoyed writing the story, and every time I hear the Beastie Boys' (You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (to Party), a montage of Gilfanon's big to-do forms in my old noggin. :^D
Ah, The Lays of the Violet! Although at face value, the inspiration may seem to have been derived from Angband, but more likely from the miasma drifting from an academic ivory tower. ;^)
I'm hoping to revisit the adventures of Elrond, Glorfindel, and Gilfanon at some point in the future.
Comments
The Silmarillion Writers' Guild is more than just an archive--we are a community! If you enjoy a fanwork or enjoy a creator's work, please consider letting them know in a comment.