2005 Author Reviews for
Tanaqui

The thing that impressed me most about Tanaqui's Silmarillion poetry is the variety of styles offered. Whether it's mimicry or grim drinking songs, Tanaqui shows an ability to write well in many different forms, and it's that kind of versatility that marks a poet with a true talent for language.

Tanaqui seems to be most at home during the turning points, and by turning points, I mean most specifically the emotional turning points. Whether it's Anarion thinking on what Isildur has done or Hurin voicing defiance against impossible odds, Tanaqui gets right into a character's head and defines the moment as they experience it.

One of Tanaqui's greatest abilities in drabbling is to capture flashes of insight or realization on the part of various characters. "And There Make a Garden" and "Legacies" are good examples of this. But what I like best about Tanaqui's drabbles is the poetry and how phrases become metaphors for many different things. "Brothers-in-Arms" is probably my favorite because of this, followed closely by "Cruel Caradhras." The ability to pack so much meaning into so few words is remarkable, and I can only shake my head in awe at that ability.

Tanaqui's use of contrasts in the drabble "From the Eastern Force" makes it unusually powerful. The contrasts of grim faces but true hearts, short-reach but heavy blows, and rock-hard but capable of grief tell a lot about the dwawrves, but also a lot about the elves who are watching them and what they value in allies. Very good double characterization with a single blow.

Tanaqui shows some remarkable versatility in this drabbles, hinting at part of a story in "Faithful Companion," telling almost the entire tale in "Refuge," and pulling off some powerful characterization and fascinating backstory with "Details." All in a mere 100 words. I think the trick might lie in Tanaqui's ability to brush the details enough to create a clear picture but not so much that the reader has no room to fill in the blanks. And Tanaqui isn't afraid to let some things go unstated, which takes a great deal of courage on the part of an author. Very nice drabbles.

One of the things that Tanaqui does best in these drabbles is to use them as a gateway to other things. Somehow or another, whether it's foreshadowing, allusions, or tie-ins to canon events, each of these drabbles connects with a larger picture so that the drabble becomes the lens that focuses on new aspects of a familiar scene. "Sand-castles when the tide is flowing" was probably my favorite of the drabbles, and I love the way it contrasted Faramir and Boromir through the use of their respective castles, alluding to their eventual fates. It was very powerful in hinting but never directly saying what was going on, and it had good!Denethor in it, which is always a bonus. But the other drabbles were equally good, so kudos to Tanaqui for some amazing writing and good use of drabbles.

Tanaqui seems to thrive as an author of turning points and confrontations, both of which can be very difficult to do correctly. The emotions involved and the drama and tension have to be pitched just right or it feels contrived and forced. But Tanaqui makes it look easy. Some of it comes from the length of the stories. For example, "Cup of Bitterness" is longer than many stories of this type would be, but the length feeds into the tension, and Tanaqui makes certain that the story itself is never stagnant but always moving. The other thing Tanaqui does well to help along dramatic situations is dialogue. "Before the Doors of the Houses of Healing" is a perfect example of how to host an argument. Tanaqui has give and take from both sides, challenges from both sides, and a perfect sense of timing for both letting them loose and then drawing them back. In the end, all of this makes for very good drama and very emotional turning points.

Tanaqui has a unique facility with, and appreciation of, the somewhat more archaic English language as it might have been written by Tolkien. She can say in few words (like in her drabbles, for example) what others can only accomplish in many, and the words have not only extraordinary descriptive power but also an emotional resonance than most authors lack. Her perceptiveness about the characters that she graces with her writing is exquisite. Tanaqui also has a incredible talent for subtle word-play, which she showcases especially well in her erotic writing, including her erotic drabbles -- nothing is explicit, but so much is suggested, that they fire the creative imagination of the reader. She is one of the extremely few authors whose erotica I will read. But I also really enjoy Tanaqui's character sketches, as in "What Can Be Saved" or "A Good Custom" or "Faithful Companion" or "A Net of Warring Duties", as well as her delightful sense of humor, as displayed in "The King's Summons" or "Not Permitted" or "A Good Match". One of my (many) favorite examples of her writing is her drabble series, "Elements of Ithilien", and this is an excerpt of my review of that work: After reading Tanaqui's writing, I feel enriched and infused with joy for the exquisiteness of your works of word-art, Liz. Your drabbles truly inspire me. Thank you for sharing them with us all!

Most of the time, when someone decides to tell the story from the point of view of the Haradrim, it's told with a sympathetic voice and with great suffering and hardship. Most of the time, the one from Harad is even coereced into Sauron's service. But Tanaqui takes a decidedly different approach here, and I'm very grateful to that. Tanaqui tells the story of a proud man who is anxious to fight for his country and to right the wrongs he believes have been committed against his people. It's an eerie echo of what Gondor and Rohan believe, which makes me wonder how much of what either side believes is really true...