Fanfiction Recommendations

[anwyn]

I have a favorite LJ community called "Tolkien Weekly" though the weekly part is deceiving in that there is usually a story or two waiting to be enjoyed everyday. There is a weekly challenge where the aurthors are given a theme to write a "drabble" upon, I really dislike that term but a drabble is a story that is one hundred words, no more and no less.

The theme for this week was "Doom" and there were a couple submissions but this one caught my eye

Title: Doom
Source: All of canon, really.
Disclaimer: Tolkien doomed Man and blamed Eru.
Author's Note: For the 'doom' challenge, fairly obviously.


Many names I am given, and most are spoken in anger or despair; for mortal men rail against the path they walk. Do they not know their end was a gift from their Lord? That it is blessing which I bestow? Would they have the Elven life, to walk forever and witness all they love whither and die? Better to remember sweeter times and take with grace the gifts I grant them.

Many names I am given: Fate and Wyrd and Destiny; but only one do I require; for I am Doom, and all must face me ere their end.

Original link back

These two stories too written for the "Dark" Challenge

Title: A Way Through the Dark I
Author: Kortirion
Character: Legolas
Rating: G
Source: FotR
Disclaimer: Tolkien’s treasure – Kortirion’s wee bawbie!

This place was tainted. By death, by the dark... by something… unseen, monstrous, something that trailed raw evil. But he couldn’t say so; the others followed Gandalf’s lead and so must he. Legolas shuddered, caves were one thing... his own father’s palace held deep tunnel-workings, but this... There was Dark here that couldn’t be relieved by torches. He felt the very earth bearing down, crushing him, holding him tight, never to see the light, the stars, the...

A hand touched his, a gruff voice spoke,

“Place a hand on my shoulder Master Elf; I know my way through the dark.”


Title: A Way Through the Dark II
Author: Kortirion
Character: Gimli
Rating: G
Source: FotR
Disclaimer: Tolkien’s treasure – Kortirion’s wee bawbie, or two!


This place was tainted. All the tales said an evil enchantress dwelt here, a creature who’d ensnare your thoughts, your desires, your very being... He had resisted stoutly, ‘who were they to say he must walk blindfolded and disarmed like some criminal?’ Only when the others agreed had he reluctantly allowed them to place him in the dark.

His eyes were tightly bound, all his senses on edge, these spaces were too open, the smells too varied, the ground underfoot treacherous...

A soft voice spoke,

“Place a hand on my belt Master Dwarf; I’ll lead your way through the dark.”

Original link

The entire community is found here community.livejournal.com/tolkien_weekly/

I have only given a small sample but everything on there is quite worth checking out, the only warning I would give is that some of the stories contain slash or implied slash and if you are bothered by that kind of thing, just keep an eye to the warnings above the links or "cuts" that lead into the store, but most are general and I apprechiate that the stories there are written about all of Tolkiens Characters, As much as I love Aragorn and Legolas, its kid of nice not having every story be about them.


Edit

Becuase I stumbled my way into the archieves, Some more stories that I found, From the "Birth" challenge

Elfwine of Rohan
Title: Elfwine of Rohan
Author: Annmarwalk
Characters: Eomer
Disclaimer: Not mine, merely borrowed for 100 words.
For the "Birth" challenge

Did it happen like this? We haven’t a clue, but I find it very easy to imagine.

Elfwine

“ ‘Tis a son!” our young king bellows, waking the hall with the exuberance of the cry.

He would not be hustled away to drink in solitude during the birth, no, not our king! He stayed through it all, wide-eyed, squeezing our lady’s hand; and caught the gasping, howling boy himself, to our chagrin and secret delight.

“A son, a son, a son!” Riders, farmers, farriers, and scullery maids gather laughing in the stableyard to wet the baby’s head. Our grey-eyed sea-queen dozes, smiling, while the king breaks out the mead; then dispatches our very fastest riders off to Ithilien


Heirs Of Imladris
Title: Heirs Of Imladris
Character: Elrond
Word Count: 100
Disclaimer: Tolkien's, not mine.

Author Notes: For the 'Births' challenge. Elrond reflects.

Imladris, TA 130


Heirs of Imladris


All is quiet now, peaceful and still. It is late, and you are asleep, cradled in your mother’s arms, tired out after the great adventure of your birth. She too is exhausted, but never have I seen her so happy, so serene and content. You have been long awaited, little ones.

I look at you, so tiny, so perfect, so vulnerable; and feel a great sense of awe that I played a part in creating something so wonderful. I know in this instant that I would give my very life to protect you both.

Welcome to Imladris, my beloved sons.


Gilded Timbers
Title: Gilded Timbers
Author: SheBit
Characters: Edoras!
Source: Umm, UT, I think
Rating: General.
Disclaimer: It's all the Professor's. He built Edoras, I just wander about the stables.
Author's Note: For the Edoras challenge.




As they crested a hill he saw it for the first time. The high-perched hall shone, gilded timbers bright as morning light. Verdant banners emblazened with white horses and golden suns fluttered from every heavy-beamed wall, grim soldiers patroling the windswept ramparts. Within those walls rose a hundred pale-thatched rooves and the great carven roof of the stables, wooden steeds standing proud at high gables.

“You have done much in so short a time. This place does you honour.”

“Your gift honours me, Lord Cirion, and all my people. We are bond allies now. When you call, Edoras will answer.

[anwyn]

Your very welcome. I could not write these either, though I do really enjoy reading them and the detail and imagery that is put into so few words, I am too long winded I suppose, lol

[Thranduil]

Never heard of 'Drabble' before; but I am impressed!

Never would have thought it possible to write a story in a mere century of words... is Drabble unique to this site?

[anwyn]

Exactly! It takes me paragraphs at work to write what anyone else could put in a few sentances. If someone has a hurt foot lets say, I will include a very detailed description of the foot, what supposedly happened, what I did about the said hurt foot....on and on, same goes with my writing. Even when I was just first starting off, I could never do "short"

Thandruil, The idea of "drabble" is not unique to that site, a few years back I overheard a friend of my ex talking about some "drabbles" she had written, but the only ones that have ever intrested me are LOTR related, and as for quality that site definately has the best I have ever seen. Though there does seem to be the same constant dozen people that participate in every challenge and others just pass through.

I also enjoy the variety that springs up, you see a certain word and automatically it brings to mind certain characters or threads of the great Tolkien lore but then a writer will come along and totally surprise you, or will take a theme and not even give a character name and you are left in your own mind to imagine who it was about.

I was checking out that Valar guild site, and there is an author there called Cassia, who also runs "The Mellon Chronicles" where the story "To see a world" is hosted, and it sounded very familar and then there was a blurb about her writing in the Star Wars fandom, and when I was more into that I used to really her stories written in that world too, lol. Its great to see that there are high standard sites out there like Valar Guild and MC, Fanfiction.net amongst some writing circles has become known as "The pit" which is suiting I guess becuase abseloutely anything can be dumped there, not to say that everyhing there is terrible but any stories of quality get covered up by page upon page of crap.

[anwyn]

I really enjoyed both of those stories, The first one was chilling but very true to how I feel the Nazgul were meant to be, not the big bullies so many people want to color them as, but they acted under the direct will of Sauron. The description of his mind being lain wide open to the great eye and not a single thought being private, that really really got to me. In a way, It almost makes you want to pity the Ringwraiths, that they were undone by their own greed yes but at the same time becoming the immortal servants of such an evil is a fate far worse than death.

The second story, incredible. I really liked the characterization of Aragorn, how he has that almost immediate bond with so many, becuase of his years upon years of travel that he would have encountered so many and gained such an understanding of peoples from all walks of life, From the very rich to the very poor and there in have the incredible empathy that is shown there. The POV from a completely unknown character was great, I see alot of characters (not on here) who want to be princesses of princes...just so that people will have reason to know them, know of them...whatever. But written a certain way ever a dirt farmer can be intresting and have a story of his own, such was the case there of the perspective that no one would have known with and his feelings of "The Return of the King" and thinking about it, It does seem kind of strange to expect that *everyone* was pleased about it, after all that had happened, and that the minute Aragorn took his place that everything was at once right again with the world.

I need to snoop around that site some more, both those sites were very well written.