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The Silmarillion
Official Voting Ballot


First Age
S1-3: Brucia la terra mia by Moralanqua
URL: http://www.scribeoz.com/fanfic/story.php?no=249
Right off, you set a scene of peace and beauty, and then you proceed
to utterly rip it apart. Nice. In this story, the Dagor Bragollach
seems more than merely an attack on elves; it seems an attack on
Arda herself. Still, the elves here mount a solid defense. I just
love this line: "I am ready. Let it come, let them all come." That
Aegnor, what an elf.

First Age
S1-4: Dark Forge by Ithilwen
URL: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/724460/1/
I've read a lot of Maeglin-under-torture fic, but you've rendered
him so beautifully here. First, the technical stuff: your use of
words is exquisite. Your verbs are strong, your adverbs sparse and
powerful. Sentences roll on with an unstoppable rhythm. And then
there's the story itself: wending, winding, drawing painfully toward
the inevitable end. Maeglin is the victim in this self-told tale.
After all, he merely sought things we have all wanted: freedom,
light, acceptance, and love. None of that was too much to ask.

First Age
S1-6: Finrod's Oath by Jmac
URL: http://www.scribeoz.com/fanfic/story.php?no=52
The beauty of this piece is its subtlety, for there is more than one
oath of Finrod: his oath to Feanor, of course, but also his promises
to Amarie, Barahir, Andreth. This story is his contemplation of all
those oaths, of the devotion he gave so generously and of how that
giving spirit has brought him to this end, full of regret. It seems
that now, at last, he realizes that seeking happiness is not
entirely selfish: "Despite my best efforts all my good intentions
have come for naught and every decision I ever made appears to have
been wrong... In my long and weary life, I could not save any of
those I wished." What a tragedy that this realization should come
too late. However, noble to the end, Finrod does not accept his
failures resignedly. He fights. The ending of this fic is so
appropriate. This may be the most solidly put together interior
monologue piece in ficdom.

Incomplete
SI-1: A Veiled Light by Andreth
URL: http://www.scribeoz.com/fanfic/story.php?no=440
Argh! You've removed all but the first three chapters! I knew you
were rewriting, but, but, but... Cirdan! Gil-Galad! Elrond! All of
the aforementioned hot elves nekkid and bothered! I feel very much
like pouting, but I'll restrain myself. Yes, yes, the three chapters
you've left up are spectacular as far as introductions go. Your
desriptions of the limitations and encumberances a Maia would feel
in a human body were particularly believable. Of course she would
come up on deck without clothes, imagining her mortal form to be
clothing enough. Makes sense to me. How rude of those elves to
stare. And the dream sequence seemed a little more detailed than it
was before, now with a mention of the chest of goodies (was that in
there before, this early on? I don't remember it, but I did start
reading this story a long time ago). I hope you'll get the muse to
begin your rewriting in earnest: there's so much genius sitting
privately on your hard drive right now, and it deserves a really
bright spotlight.


Incomplete
SI-2: Beneath the Light by Mouse
URL: http://www.henneth-annun.net/stories/chapter.cfm?STID=110
The descriptions in this story are breathtaking, more so because
they filter through the point of view of a master craftsman,
Maeglin, so they necessarily contain a deep level of detail and
poetry. The sensory images are especially compelling: "pulpy
splitting of sword through flesh and blood." From chapter 1 to the
end, I felt keenly the dual between awe and yearning that was going
on in Maeglin's head. The symbolic end of part 3, with the
inadvertent, inescapable murder of the nightengale was a sleek bit
of foreshadowing, too. I really wish you would consider finishing
this piece. It is lovely.


Romance
SR2: Fell Fire by Finch
URL: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/713372/1/
This was the first fic I read that clearly defined the differences
between elves and men. Most impressive was that you *showed* the
difference, you didn't merely declare that such a difference
existed. The notion of an elvish while is burned in my brain, a
prime example of the show-not-tell writing mantra and also an
example of the kind of polished writing in fanfic that I've always
hoped to emulate. Elegant turns of phrase and exquisite metaphors
pepper the piece: "The image curled up like burning parchment." But
the thing I have to confess about this story, the thing that stuck
with me long after I read it, was the idea of children being a
mortal person's way of achieving immortality. That idea fits so
beautifully with the canon facts that we know of the races, and it
ached horribly in this story that Andreth never could (or would)
make Aegnor or his brother understand. That idea inspired a fic I
wrote a couple of years ago, and it remains one of the central
truths in elf/human understanding, as far as I'm concerned.

Romance
SR3: Of Gold and Wood by Ladyperedhel
URL: http://www.scribeoz.com/fanfic/story.php?no=622
This story is so bright it's painful to read. The love between
Finrod and Amarie grows brilliant and perfect and unbearably sweet,
leaving only a tremendous question at the end: How could he possibly
leave her, after all that? Argh!


Second Age
S2-3: Mortal Shores by Vorondis
URL: http://www.henneth-annun.net/stories/chapter_view.cfm?
STID=259&SPOrdinal=1
I think I've sent some of this feedback to you privately, but just
to reiterate some of the things that impressed me about this
story ... Thank you for writing Galadriel as I always imagined her.
From her dusky voice to her complicated relationship with
Celebrimbor, you've captured it all. And I chuckled out loud at this
description of Aman: "the Blessed but not Very Eventful Realm". In
chapter 6, the simile that compares hand-to-hand fighting
with "guilty lovemaking" is inspired. And then this from chapter
7: "The thought chilled her, for she realised what those means
were." You always find ways of bringing up those durned rings. How
very Tolkienesque of you. Of course, a highlights recap wouldn't be
complete without my very favorite line from the story: "'My lady,'
Glorfindel said, 'dying is not something I can recommend.'" Bwahaha
(Not to mention, that dry wit is perfectly in character for your
Glorfindel).

Second Age
S2-4: Oath Renewed by Inglor
URL: http://www.scribeoz.com/fanfic/story.php?no=906
How have I never read this story before? I feel like a complete
dork, but at least I'm reading it now. Wow, Inglor. This is good
stuff! As always, you've captured the spirit, fury, and nobility of
those first-age elves, and you've subtly threaded in your
Silmarillion knowledge without whacking me over the head with it.
Interesting in this piece, though, by the end, the sword has almost
become a character on its own. It is invested with such meaning and
emotion, and it reflects those feelings: "Gil-Galad grasped the hilt
and felt the need for vengeance emanate from the weapon." Creepy,
but very cool and very in-keeping with those cranky first-age
swords. And of course, as usual, your depiction of Galadriel is
utter smoothness. Here you've also added in some wonderful
characterizations of Finrod and Elendil, the former both commanding
and fated, the latter awed and resolute. If I had a suggestion it
would be to make the summary a little more vague... the ending was
powerful even knowing the spoiler, but I think it would have struck
me a little harder if I hadn't seen it coming.

Second Age
S2-5: Seashell by Nol
URL: http://www.storiesofarda.com/chapterlistview.asp?SID=1880
This is a hushed and soul-rending moment, including strong
characterizations of both Maglor and Elros. I could feel distinctly
the energy and optimism of Elros, and the utter pathos and
loneliness of Maglor. Beautiful short piece.


S3: Gold Like Tears by Zimraphel
"It was like embracing the moon." Gah. Nothing I can say in a review
will do this story justice, so I'll just ramble on here a while
until I can collect coherent thoughts. First, the physical doohickie
of the bead: thank you, thank you for choosing something so unique
and unassuming. Not a ring. Not a sword. Not a jewel. In fact, it's
such a simple yet representative thing, Tolkien would probably
approve. Like Tolkien's simple golden ring, this bit of gold grows
more sinister as the story progresses, and by the end, it seemed to
spell certain doom, even if it were given in love. Definitely both
unsettling and touching.

S4: If Women had Ruled Middle Earth by Mouse
URL: http://www.henneth-annun.net/stories/chapter.cfm?STID=39
I didn't even know that Silmfic humour existed before I read this
piece, and now I can hardly read the Silmarillion without having
sillymarillion thoughts. A wonderful romp, from beginning to end.

S6: Not for Pride Alone by Zimraphel
URL: http://www.scribeoz.com/fanfic/story.php?no=453
This is my favorite Glorfindel fanfic. Period. I know that this
contest is based on word count, so it would behoove me to come up
with something flowery and verbose to say about this story that I
haven't said before. Alas. All I can say really is that it is about
as close to perfect as fic gets. I hope other voters read this
review and are inspired to go read the story. They won't be
disappointed.

AUTHORS (remember to comment on the writer as regards to the
category, not the story, here):

SA1: Andreth
A Veiled Light
The three chapters of A Veiled Light that are still out there for
public viewing don't even scratch the surface of displaying the
talent Andreth brings to this fandom. She reads like a real-life
paid-by-publishers bought-by-fans authoress. This kind of writing
takes not just skill with words -- anybody can compose a pretty
sentence -- but also refined a command of storytelling, pacing,
character development, dialogue, and astonishingly balanced action-
versus-interior-meandering.

SA8: Finch
Fell Fire
Finch was my first taste of beautiful writing in Tolkien fanfiction.
Without the inspiration I drew from her work, I would never have
written Tolkien fic. I'm not sure I ever confessed this debt, but
it's there. I still aspire to write like Finch, and I'm still
inspired by Finch's writing.

SA10: Inglor
Oath Renewed
I just started reading Inglor's work a few months ago, and it is
certainly impressive. The bits that couldn't be nominated for this
contest -- yes, bits that actually name and discuss intimate body
parts and the workings thereof -- are, if anything, even more
indicative of Inglor's skill. I especially appreciate his care and
attention to detail, even with (especially with) characters who
typically just don't get enough screen time, or fic time: Galadriel,
Amarie, Finrod, Celeborn.

SA12: Jmac
Finrod's Oath
JMac writes really funny stuff. She also writes really serious
stuff, really gross nasty stuff, and really romantic beautiful
stuff. I think JMac could write pretty much anything, given
sufficient will and time. In the end, though, I don't care what she
writes. I just want her to do more of it.

SA15: Moralanqua
Brucia la terra mia
Moralanqua writes compelling fanfiction. At some point the passion
of her work takes over, and I just cannot stop reading. Moreoever, I
can read her without second-guessing; I know that she has already
done the research, so I can *believe*. I never read Moralanqua's
stories with an editorial eye (and this is very weird for me). I
read them, and appreciate them, as a fan.

SA24: Zimraphel
Steadfast, Cuivie, Gold Like Tears, Not for Pride Alone, Song of the
Waters
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.


This category ends on October 25th at 11:59pm Central US time