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.
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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.
What was Finrod thinking? Perhaps, if he truly wanted to court her, he thought she ought to know what kind of tangled mess she might be getting herself into if she accepted him? Poor girl!
I loved this part:
He had watched the proceedings and made the occasional respectful remark, while she had watched his lovely profile, the elegant manner in which his hand cupped his chin, the attentive way in which he leaned forward, the sparkle in his eyes as his focus shifted from one speaker to the next.
So much fun to read. She was a clever maid, but one who found herself there because she was simply attracted to this handsome, charming young man. (One might see Finrod in later years as a snake charmer himself. Since in M-e he seemed to be the one who tried to stay on good terms with all of kinsmen, despite their complicated differences and alliances or lack thereof.)
Well, he thinks that these council sessions are super exciting and didn't realise that others might find it less interesting. But as you say, letting her see how complicated his family is isn't the worst idea if he's serious about courting her. :D
She does figure it out neatly enough. (And that's a neat thought! Well, he does keep on wearing that ring until he gives it to Barahir!) Glad you enjoyed it!
Despite the mix of blood that Finrod has, I think that the Noldor predominates in him so he must find discussions about sewage repairs and mining committees fascinating. Does he realize that Amarie, and the Vanyar in general I suppose, must be bored to tears by these topics? Smart girl Amarie who picks the undercurrents right away!
she realised that comparing the commonwealth of the Noldor to a furry little burrower might be a little insulting.
Feanor and Fingolfin's behaviour make marmots seem statesmanlike and dignified!
I think he enjoys the sense of duty and political participation more than the actual content of the discussions, FWIW. ;) I don't think he realises that Amárie might not see it the same way. On the other hand, it does give Amárie plenty of opportunity to analyse the unspoken!
Hah! No self-respecting marmot ever swore an unbreakable oath, or challenged Morgoth to single combat, either! Perhaps she didn't want to insult the marmot?
Well, he's sharing something that's of the utmost importance to him and has shaped who he is, so in that sense, it's a good choice. Just not what she expected. I figure that as an outsider, she would have a clearer view... :) Thank you!
I love this idea! Really very clever and a perfect use of canon! You made me spend a long time on the web trying to find an artistic representation that resembled your description of the ring. Did you have an inspiration or have you drawn one? This one was the closet I could find.
Ooh, thank you! Glad you liked my idea. Barahir's ring - or rather, the fact that it is supposed to be the emblem of the House of Finarfin - is rather enigmatic, considering that the heraldic designs Tolkien doodled tend to look... completely different from the snakes and flowers described in the Lay of Leithian. And I am extremely underwhelmed by the way it was executed in the LotR movies, I must admit.
As it happens, I do have a rather shoddy sketch that comes closer to what I imagine, although that doesn't really do it justice either. It's missing the coiled snake bodies too - I only thought of that detail later on, TBH! And obviously, I am less skilled as an artist than Fëanor is as a goldsmith! (Well duh.)
Anyway, I'm thrilled you like both the description of the ring and the characterisation of these folks. I don't often write Finarfinians (or Vanyar) so it was a fun new thing to try.
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.