2004 Author Reviews for
Zimraphel

Zimraphel has a unique ability to burrow into the characters minds, root out their true thoughts, and then bring them to the surface. But it's done subtly enough that their outward personalities, occasionally a shield against grief or pain, remain firmly in place. The result is a fantastic characterization blend that incorporates nearly all the attributes of the characters in question. Then Zimraphel adds in a touch of beautiful, heart-wrenching angst and the end result is stunning. We come to know the characters well enough that their drama is also our drama, and when they are hurt, we are hurt right along with them.

What can I say about Zimraphel that I won't repeat each and every place she's up for an author award? She's the standout author of the year for me. And she's not tied down to just one genre, just one time, just one race. Here she does Elves and accomplished what no one else has managed in me since I read the Silm: She brought closure to Feanor. Left him where I don't have to hate him anymore.

I think she's a fandom of one for the Second Age, and another of those authors who enjoys going into areas of Tolkien's multi-faceted tale that simply don't get enough attention. She evokes atmosphere very well with relatively few descriptive phrases, and gives us an intense moral-psychological portrait of her characters in this story.

The true power of Zimraphel's writing is in leaving so much unspoken. Zimraphel shows but never tells, leaving readers to infer and guess at the details. For horror writing, this is remarkably effective. The mind's creativity is sometimes far more effective for creating a state of fear, and Zimraphel takes advantage of that by painting a picture of forgotten worlds, uncertainty, and shadows. But one thing is never left in doubt, and that is the feelings of the elf involved in the tale. And out of those feelings, the reader's mind can create entirely new worlds of horror. Very effective writing technique.

It's no surprise to me that Zimraphel can write horror. I think she writes everything well. She pulled off the spookiness in this so well, so underplayed. As someone else said, it's what she leaves unsaid that makes the difference. Zimraphel got into the head of the unhoused Elf and got into the evil that crept into him. Yet he still sounds like an Elf.

The "Unfinished Tales" are full of wonderful little tidbits, and Zimraphel expands on one of these very well, tying it in neatly during the brief stay at Orthanc during which Gandalf breaks Saruman's staff. Zimraphel does a good job of keeping the reader in the dark but of building the tension through dark hints on Gandalf's part. Switching the viewpoints around during the course of the story was very well done, too. It's easy to have the story come across as jerky or uneven when the POV keeps switching, but Zimraphel makes it a smooth, even blend as all emotions eventually run together and the power of the story takes over.

I have yet to read a klunker from Zimrpahel's pen. Her stories are powerful and so-well crafted. You feel them, not just read them. She is an incredibly talented writer. It was hard finding story NOT to nominate! I nominated some of them without having read them first, just because I kenw she was that good an author. I knew I'd read them during Reading Season and be hard pressed not to vote on them. There is sometimes, for me, a breakout author in every year's awards season, even on ASC. This year, it is Zimraphel. I knew some of the others here were great writers. I hadn't yet come to that realization with Zimraphel. But she convinced me for sure with this Awards year. I look forward to finding more of her stories for next year's awards. Truly, I would recommend her to anyone.

Zimraphel can write anything. I'm convinced of it. Short, long, Men, Elves, Gollum.. Her original characters are always so well-drawn and fleshed out, as if effortlessly. Her plots are tight and she has a way with evoking emotions in her readers.

Zimraphel has the ability to find the other perspective angle in dealing with Númenor. The three stories nominated here are always told with something of a slant. A different way of looking at things, if you will. Whether it's a gifted shipwright watching his pride and glory sail into what will become ruin or a simple maid reunited with his parent's kin just ere the storm breaks, we're shown the other side of life in Númenor. The main characters and conflict are there, but Zimraphel gives it an added dimension that makes it that much more complete.

You know, when I think of Numenor, I see your kiss-stealing cutey from a Ranga of Wool, your shipbuilder from Aglaramma, your thug from The Eleventh Hour. These are the people who populate the Numenor of my mind. What? Tolkien didn't write them? But, I was certain... well, nevermind. I like your Numenor better, anyway.

Interesting stories just about such pivotal points in Numenorean history also I would like to know more about.

I found I had yet one more nomination of Zimraphel I have to comment on. Well, no one writes Numenor like Zimraphel. I'm not a big Man-fan and yet I love her Numenor stories. You can see the island through her stories, hear the sounds, smell the air, know the people, even when they aren't canon characters like Tar-Miriel or Elendil, though she can write those as well. She has a wonderful talent, and has wonderful skills. You don't find many mistakes in her stories, neither typos or errors of grammar. Nor do you find boring tangents that don't serve the story. She does everything and everything well. She really is a great writer.

Zimraphel is the gold standard for Silmarillion fic. Her work is always top-notch, high-quality fiction. Certainly I have my favourites among her stories, but I'm never disappointed by anything she writes. It's all consistently good. I have no idea how she does this, but as soon as I figure it out, I shall bottle the secret superpower and sell it for millions.

Zimraphel has a way of bringing legends to life and also of making legends with a life of their own. What I find truly interesting is how Zimraphel stays away from the heart of the legend, instead showing us bits of the beginning or pieces of the end. The middle is left unspoken, and I really like this approach because it lets us create our own images of what happened in the great stories based on what Zimraphel gives as foundation or conclusion. The story of Glorfindel, for instance, and the confrontation with the Witch-king shows Glorfindel after the Balrog slaying and gives us glimpses of what we might have seen had we been on that trail out of Gondolin with him. The different tales of Círdan, Voronwë, and Tuor show these heroes before they really became heroes, but the seeds of greatness were obviously there and it adds depth to the moments that Tolkien lays out in the Silmarillion. I don't know of any author who so thoroughly explores the area around the legend rather than the legend itself, and I find that this is a very refreshing look at Silmarillion fanfiction.

I can think of no other writer in the fandom who has hit so many home runs. Most writers have a few good fics. All her fics are grand slams. Some writers are as good (at most 5) but I can't think of any who are as prolific with out a drop off in quality.

Zimraphel has a very smooth style and a knack for getting inside of her characters' heads. Elves feel like Elves; Ents feel like you'd imagine a tree would feel if it could talk and think; and the Powers That Be In Arda have that double aspect of humane inhumanity that one would expect of an angel.

Zimraphel writes with an authority. I can almost glimpse that she sees this world as much as Tolkien did and then shares those visions of it with us. She must visualize so much to write what she writes and it amazes me. She is the stand-out author to me of these Awards. I have not once been let down by one of her stories, never once turned away in disinterest. She draws me in, even with unfamiliar characters or cultures I'm not really drawn to. She can write the wonder, the spooky, the horrific, the beautiful all with equal talent. Zimraphel really has a gift, and I'm very glad she shares it with us.