Silver's Helpful Writing Tips

What Writers Get Wrong About Lord of the Rings Fanfiction: Elves Part One

Hello there! My name is Julianne, found on Wattpad as Silmarilz1701, and it is such an honor to be able to help on this post. I'm going to be walking everyone through the history of the elves, what not to do with them in fanfiction, and how you can create unique connections by using the history of Middle Earth.

First and foremost, where did the elves come from?

The Beginning of the Elves

Before the elves walked the earth, there are spirits created by Eru Iluvatar, the Middle Earth equivalent of the Christian "God" figure. These spirits created the vision of Eru, constructing the Earth and all its creatures. But they didn't create elves or men. Elves were created first among the Children of Iluvatar (Elves, Men). They awoke on the shores of a massive inland sea at a place called Cuivienen.

Eventually, after much debate and a visit to the Blessed Realm by their leaders, the elven host split into two groups: Calaquendi and Moriquendi. The Calaquendi journeyed west to the Blessed Realm across the sea while the Moriquendi refused. Moriquendi means Dark Elves because they never saw the light of the Blessed Realm.

As the Calaquendi journeyed west, one of their leaders became lost. He became enchanted by a Maia named Melian, and they disappeared. The Teleri (his kindred of elves) stayed and looked for him. Half of Elwë's people stayed behind for good to look for him, and they became the Sindar. We'll come back to them.

The rest of the elven host went on their way. They finally reached the edge of Middle Earth and waited to be transported by island to Valinor. Here, another split occurred as part of the Teleri stayed behind on the shores, led by Cirdan. He's the guy at the Grey Havens in Lord of the Rings who makes the ships. He also gives Gandalf his ring of power. 

Fun fact: Cirdan is one of only two elves to ever grow a beard that are mentioned! His people became Falathrim.

Finally all the kindreds who wanted to had reached Valinor.

Geography

Here I shall explain some differences between Valinor, Beleriand, and Third Age Middle Earth. Upon creation of the world and after a great war against the original dark lord Morgoth, two great continents were formed: Middle Earth and Aman. Aman lay in the Uttermost West and that was where the Ainur, the spirit beings, made their homes. It was absolute bliss. Light came from two massive trees, one golden (Laurelin) and one silver (Telperion).

Middle Earth was comprised of Beleriand in the western half, and the other lands found in Lord of the Rings more in the East. It was dark, with only stars to light it. There was no sun and no moon, and the light of the Trees could not reach it. Here, Morgoth, known then as Melkor, terrorized the elves. He even created the orcs from captured and tortured elves. Third Age Middle Earth is half the size of original Middle Earth. As we'll see, some events led to the destruction of Beleriand and the sinking of it into the sea.

But Aman, called Valinor, became a haven for the elves for a time, away from the terrors of Middle Earth. When the three kindreds finally reached Valinor, they became known as the Vanyar, Noldor, and Falmari. Each has specific characteristics.Vanyar:

The Vanyar are rarely spoken about. Their most famous members are Elenwë, Indis and Ingwë, but they don't mean much in the grand scheme of things. All Vanyar had golden or fair hair, pale skin, and grey eyes. They were the most faithful of the elves and delighted in music and wordplay. They lived with Manwë and Varda, the king and queen of the Valar.

Teleri:The Falmari were a subsection of the Teleri. I mentioned some other ones previously, with the Sindar and the Falathrim. These are some of the elves you are likely to come across or create in Tolkien Fanfiction. Their prominent members include: Celeborn, Oropher, Thranduil, Legolas, and Cirdan. The Sindar are less common in the Third Age, found primarily in Rivendell where Elrond, part Sinda, houses them.