2023 Is Our Year of History!

Dear SWG members and friends,

This year, the Silmarillion Writers' Guild will turn eighteen years old. If it was a person (and sometimes it feels like it is!), it would be a legal adult in most parts of the world. Having started humbly as just a Yahoo! Group and LiveJournal community in 2005, it represents a tremendous achievement for everyone involved that we've worked to build this group into what it is today.

The past few years have been years of progress. We were challenged by our aging software and met that challenge by migrating the site to Drupal, allowing us to continue to build and expand. The SWG now accepts all types of fanworks, and we've added new features like a beta directory and our Beyond the Silmarillion section. We've transcended our name in more ways than one: more than writing, more than just The Silmarillion. We're also pleased to host a vibrant Discord community that holds regular events, most of them run by our members.

Eighteen years, however, represents a lot of history as well. When we moved to the new site, much of that history preserved on our old site could not be easily moved. If 2021 and 2022 were years of progress, 2023 is set aside as a year for history, and over the next year, we will work to restore these historical artifacts to our site so that the SWG's history is easily available for all to enjoy.

The past few years have been rough for Tolkien-based fanworks archives. The closure of Yahoo! Groups, deprecating software, and changing internet use habits have all impacted small archives, never for the good. We've seen many sites close or become inactive. We recognize that the SWG's success amid these losses is an anomaly, and it is not an accident: it is the result of our members, who are committed to our community and archive, and your willingness to share your fanworks, time, and enthusiasm with us. We are grateful to embark on another year with all of you, in which we look forward  to continuing to grow the SWG.

Best wishes for a wonderful 2023!

Dawn, Russandol, Grundy, Lyra, Angelica, Elleth, Janeways, and Saelind
SWG moderators

Posted on 31 December 2022 (updated 4 February 2023) by SWG Moderators