Triangle Tolkienists

Promo image of the Tolkien movie, featuring Nicholas Hoult as Tolkien and Lily Collins as Edith, with a war scene, the TCBS, and handwritten letters in the background

We'll be hosting a virtual watch party of Tolkien (2019) on Saturday, July 19, at 4pm eastern time. Join us for a chat!

discord.com/events/61456...

Quick cafe photo of a pain au chocolat and glass of matcha, with other coffees and teas and empty plates visible in the background

A handful of us gathered for a casual coffee date this morning. We're talking once again - and more seriously this time! - about starting up a TTRPG. Probably one-shots to begin with.

A black and white photo of an old Tolkien, with white hair. He's wearing a suit, smoking his pipe, with a light smile on his face.

“Other evils [...] may come; [...] Yet it is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succour of those years wherein we are set, uprooting the evil in the fields that we know, so that those who live after may have clean earth to till.”

- J.R.R. Tolkien

It's remarkable to come out of the Somme, after losing your best friends to a world-shattering war, and write a theodicy like the Music of the Ainur. The creation of the world, the Fall of Gondolin, and the transmission-narrative of the Cottage of Lost Play, all in 1917. One hell of an opening trio.

The Deep and Humorous Riches of The Quest of Erebor J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit may be the perfect fairytale. It's a little glade of all the best wildflowers amid an ancient wood of such tales, and it can be enjoyed as-is, as a stand-alone adventure wi...

A nice reflection on The Quest for Erebor, one of my favorite parts of Unfinished Tales, from @miriamellis.bsky.social www.miriamellis.com/post/the-dee...

Well, my book Illustrating The Lord of the Rings in the Soviet Bloc has gone to print! Stay tuned for the story of the artists that brought Tolkien to life for the people of Central and Eastern Europe. Release date 18 September 2025, published by Bloomsbury Academic
Art: Alexander Korotich (c.1985)

A photo of my hand holding a book titled Tolkien and Alterity, edited by Christopher Vaccaro and Yvette Kisor. The cover art features close up of Tolkien's hand-drawn map of Middle-earth in grey.

"Tolkien and Alterity", edited by Christopher Vaccaro and Yvette Kisor, is an anthology that explore Otherness in Tolkien's works.

I love "Revisiting Lobelia", "Cruising Faery: Queer Desire in Giles, Niggle, and Smith", and "The Orcs and the Others."

#TolkienTrewsday #TolkienTuesday #Booksky

ANYWAY here’s @realtomemanuel.bsky.social incredible article: dc.swosu.edu/mythlore/vol...

Join us in discussing this very exciting seminar! We'll be chatting via Discord throughout.

Westmoot Keynote Speaker, Janet Brennan Croft, delivers the Closing Keynote at a lectern, with a presentation screen visible behind her.

Did you get to hear Janet Brennan Croft’s beautiful Keynote at #Westmoot25, “‘What Ship Will Bear Me Ever Back’: Woundedness and the Western Sea”?
If not, never fear! You can read it online: scholar.valpo.edu/journaloftol...

Thank you, @banzailibrarian.bsky.social!

#westmoot #intothewest

Two paths leading towards distant mountains.

Now available for pre-order: Queer Approaches to Tolkien. mcfarlandbooks.com/product/quee...

This was a fantastic talk. Highlights for me were the points about Frodo's (dis)ability experience fluctuating along a spectrum & gaining a new axis during his time in Lothlórien/Faërie, & the connection to recovery in On Fairy-Stories (esp the quotes about color).

Thanks, @clarelmoore.bsky.social!

Also, they do still die - I'm not sure that we should just skip over the trauma involved in dying a gruesome death just because they have the potential to be reembodied later. In some ways, their suffering is greater because there is no escape from it until the end of the earth.

In the book, they're busy fighting off the page - there are battles fought in Lothlórien and Mirkwood as well, we just aren't there for them.

Hi again Mercury - I'm not able to DM you, but I would also be interested in an update on this if there is anything you're able/willing to share. Especially in light of the seminar being silently postponed. (No worries if this isn't an appropriate ask, we are strangers after all.)

On 22 June, 1342 (by Shire-reckoning), Bilbo Baggins returns to Bag End to discover he's been "Presumed Dead". All his personal effects were in the process of being auctioned off by Messrs Grubb, Grubb and Burrowes, with Bilbo having to buy many of them back. #Tolkien #BookSky

This Tuesday, June 24, we are so fortunate to have Clare Moore, @clarelmoore.bsky.social, as a guest speaker for the Carrock Smial!

Clare will be presenting new research in her talk titled, “(Dis)Ability in Faërie: Frodo in Lothlórien”.

The meeting is on Zoom, and all are welcome to attend! 💜

LOTRO Legendarium: How music binds the LOTRO community together

"It's brought this community together in a powerful way and been one of the (sorry) unsung champions of LOTRO" - MOP's Justin is still in love with Lord of the Rings Online's epic music system all these years later:
@officiallotro.bsky.social

The Fantastic Symphony of Middle-earth In my last blog post I explored the mother tree concept in Middle-earth’s woods and forests. In this one I want to pivot from the science of Arda towards its music. In writing my most recent …

NEW BLOG POST!

'The Fantastic Symphony of Middle-earth'

Here I think about the sounds of Middle-earth through some music theory, specifically Bernie Krause's biophony!

will-sherwood.com/2025/06/18/t...

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.

“lmao" said Gandalf, “well it has.”

The book Cities and Strongholds of Middle-earth: Essays on the Habitations of Tolkien's Legendarium, edited by Cami D. Agan. The cover depicts a city grid viewed from overhead; in the background of the photo is a coffee shop full of tables, couches, and a decorative plant.

21st read of 2025: Cities and Strongholds of Middle-earth (ed. Cami Agan)

Reviewing for a journal so I won't say too much, but it was good to read essays a topic that doesn't get enough play in Tolkien criticism. We all know JRRT loved nature, but he didn't hate all cities—just, you know, bad ones.

Response to Tolkien Society re: “Race-ing to Gender Arda: A Stylistics Analysis”- proposal

Robin Reid was asked to remove all references to whiteness in her paper abstract, and she kept the receipts.
robinareid.substack.com/p/response-t...

Thanks for posting about this, I'd missed it. Very discouraging decision-making here and, you're right, it doesn't jive with my experiences with the Society's members.

A presenter, Tom Hillman, stands confidently at a podium, addressing an audience with a focused expression.

Did you miss #Tolkien author Thomas P. Hillman’s talk at #westmoot25? You can read his fascinating paper online!

Check out “Túrin was dead, to begin with: Death, Fate, and a Happy Ending in 'The Book of Lost Tales'”:
scholar.valpo.edu/journaloftol...

Thanks @alas-not-me.bsky.social!

#westmoot

Book Aragorn has grown on me over time (especially with more familiarity with the historical influences), but I still agree with you - his entitlement is sometimes extremely uncomfortable as a modern reader, and the "reluctant hero" angle they used in the films is much more likable.

May I present to you one of my fav Gandalf quotes:

Durin’s house🤲

#fanart #hobbit #thorin #fili #kili

The Rohirrim as well.

This is so exciting! How do they compare for you so far?

Snapshots from the 2025 Tolkien Lecture! It was a pleasure to welcome @zenaldehyde.bsky.social as our speaker—we hope everyone who joined us enjoyed a fantastic evening ✨

#tolkienlecture #zencho