This is an editorial/essay discussing the rise of Lord of the Rings fanfiction as the direct result of the movie’s release. When I posted my first LotR fic (actually, it was two poems written about characters from The Hobbit), there were only 200 or so fanfics in the LotR section of fanfiction.net. Now, there is ten times this amount. Normally, I would see this as a good thing, something displaying an increased interest in Tolkien’s work. However, most of these new fics are what are being referred to as "Movie-verse" fics: stories written by people who have only seen the movie, or have only just started reading the novels. Yes ff.net is partially to blame for this. There is no section for LotR movie fics, so the only place writers can post their stories is in the book section. Several "genres" of stories have arisen. I will discuss each of the genres of these fics individually.

Mary-Sue stories refer to fanfics which involve an introduced female character having a romantic relationship with one of the existing male characters. Often this female character is the author herself (if written by a female), and the story is a chance for her favourite character to fall in love with her. This sort of story is not limited to LotR – Mary-Sue fics can be found in most sections of ff.net. But, specifically to LotR, Legolas and Frodo are the main "victims", due mostly to the attraction many authors have towards Orlando Bloom and Elijah Wood (the actors who played both these characters). I will admit that Mary-Sue fics existed long before the movie’s release, but there has been a significant increase ever since. In fact, most of the stories now posted on ff.net are Legolas romance.

There really is nothing wrong with the Mary-Sue idea. I will admit that I have written one (not LotR), but never finished or posted it. The problem arises with the repetitiveness of these stories. These stories have become so alike, that many authors feel that they have to say, "A Legolas [or Frodo] romance…but this one is different", when in actual fact their story applies to the Mary-Sue formula completely.

The Mary-Sue "formula" is the structure and story line that most Mary-Sue stories take. "Mary-Sue" – the author’s female character – is generally an elf or hobbit (depending on who the desired male character is). She is beautiful, talented, strong-willed, a fantastic fighter, ie, absolutely perfect. Often, she will be in some sort of danger and the male character must rescue her, or, conversely, the male character is in danger, and she rescues him. In the latter case, the male character is often belittled. Tolkien’s Legolas is deadly with a bow or with his Elvish daggers. One only needs to watch or read the LotR battle scenes to realise this. To believe that he would require the assistance of an "Elvish Princess", or anyone for that matter, is ridiculous.

Generally these stories are simply more developed Mary-Sue fics; however, the tenth member can be male. Since female members are more common, I will discuss them more so.

The tenth member is most often a handmaiden of Arwen or Galadriel, though she can be a hobbit, perhaps one that has followed Frodo, Sam, Pippin and Merry. Like "Mary-Sue", she is a skilled fighter, very beautiful, etc. Because of her fighting skills she often is the saviour of the Fellowship, rescuing them all from a potentially lethal situation.

What most of the author’s of such fics don’t realise, is that there would never be a tenth member, be it male or female. The number nine has special significance. Elrond wanted nine to equal the number of the Nazgûl: the Nine Walkers to go against the Nine Riders. This number was decided upon before Merry and Pippin became a part of the Fellowship, when Elrond planned to send to people from his House in their place.

And once again, the idea that the Fellowship would need the help of a ‘tag-along’ to rescue them is stupid.

Probably the most annoying thing about the movie-verse fics is the authors’ knowledge of character and place names. Two of the worst are probably the spelling of Saruman’s name, and Legolas’ place of origin. Many people seem to think that Saruman is actually called Sarumon, and hence, I have read more than one story, which likened him to a Digimon. ‘Rivendell’, ‘Elrond’ and ‘Merry’ are also commonly misspelt names (honestly! Merry is a male; so why do so many people think his name is Mary?).

And poor Legolas is once again a victim. Yes, the movie can be blamed for not saying where Legolas is rightly from, but still…Since Rivendell and Lothlórien are the two Elvish places which are shown, most people believe him to be from either of those two places. Well, the movie shows Legolas arrive at Rivendell, so he can’t be from there. And if he were from Lothlórien, why would the elves from there hold a bow to him? For anyone who does not know, Legolas is from Mirkwood (a forest on the other side of the Misty Mountains to Rivendell. It was once called Greenwood, but Sauron built a fortress in the south of the woods, and a shadow came over most of the forest). He is the prince of the Wood-Elves who live there.

"Sick of Mary-Sues?" is a line that is becoming far too common. I think the most truthful review I ever read was this: "You all start your stories with ‘Sick of Mary-Sue’. Well, I’m getting sick of that!" Though I believe this review was from a person who liked Mary-Sue fics, it did express something on my mind.

Parody stories have also increased in number (for they too, existed long before the movie), and presently, they all seem to be parodies of the other fics that are being written in great numbers. Some of these parodies are very well written, but unfortunately, these clever fics are few and far between. Most parodies seem to be just an excuse to mock (often cruelly) every other type of story. They introduce a Mary-Sue character, then torture and kill her. The tenth member of the Fellowship is treated in a similar way. The rest of the Fellowship is made to be hornier than high school boys.

To begin with, these parodies were amusing. A nice change from the movie-verse fics, since the majority of them were written by fans of the books. Then, the "movie fans" discovered the parody. People realised that everyone was sick of Mary-Sue stories, and the other fics that were multiplying. They could get more reviews from a story that made fun of Mary-Sue than from one simply about Mary-Sue. Thus, there has been an enormous boom in parodies.

Something else that is not limited to LotR, but has still greatly increased. Lists: "You Know You Like LotR too Much When…" "Movie Bloopers" "Things LotR Characters will Never Say" etc. Once again, some of these are clever, and thus, humorous. But most are not. Ironically, with the worst one I have read, the author had said in their summary "I’ve just written the greatest story in ff.net history!" Sorry to disappoint you, but…no. Like so many of the new fics, most of these lists are carbon copies of each other. The same things turn up in all of them. To be perfectly honest, these "fics" should not even be in the LotR section. Seeing as they are Lists, they should be posted in "Lists". If you read the "warning" when you post a fic, you will see that "Lists" are counted as a "Non-fic". They are NOT fanfiction, and therefore, should not be posted as fanfiction.

One thing that I really can’t stand, is character bashing. This refers to a story in which terrible things happen to a character that the author does not like. This character can also be altered to make them seem stupid, cowardly, etc., anything to get the author’s "point". Common victims of bashing are Boromir, Gandalf, Pippin and Arwen (movie-verse). There are varying reasons why characters are chosen for bashing, but the main reason has to do with the way they are portrayed in the movie.

Although it is not stated in the movie, Pippin is significantly younger than the rest of the Fellowship. By hobbit standards he is still basically a child (teenager at the most). Therefore, it is not surprising that he does do silly things, but that is no reason to hate him. I have read many stories which blame Pippin for Gandalf’s "death". How can it be Pippin’s fault!?! The general ‘answer’ to that question is "Oh, he pushed the skeleton down the well". If we want to be picky like that, then we can blame Gimli for going into the room in the first place. Or Frodo for making the decision to go into the mines. (Sorry, I love Pippin, so I get really upset when I read Pippin-bashing stories).

Gandalf is disliked for being an old man, and "therefore", boring. He is a wizard! Wizards are generally old men, but they are never boring. I don’t see how anyone can call Gandalf boring after seeing his fight with Saruman, or after watching him confront the Balrog.

Boromir is probably one of the most hated character (I don’t see why. I actually like Boromir). He is very noble, but because he is only human, the Ring has a stronger power over him (although Aragorn is also human, he is from a more noble race of men, and thus, has stronger resistance to the power of the Ring). Boromir only wishes for the power of the Ring so that he may protect his people. He does realise his folly, but too late. We see his nobility when he tries to protect Merry and Pippin, even when shot by several arrows.

Arwen is disliked mostly by book-fans, for the sole reason that she "stole Glorfindel’s role". I agree that it was annoying to see Glorfindel deleted, as he was a great character. However, I always liked Arwen, and it was good to see her get a larger role.

These, too, existed before the movie, but, again, there are many more now. The most common couples are Frodo/Sam, Aragorn/Legolas, Aragorn/Boromir and Merry/Pippin. It is the cultural differences that have caused these sorts of fics. The relationships, in the time that Tolkien wrote the story, were not homosexual in any way. Frodo and Sam had a deep love for each other, but it was not a sexual attraction, romance or anything of the like. Frodo was Sam’s master, whom he loved and respected. To Frodo, Sam was his closest and most beloved friend. Merry and Pippin are even less likely. They are first cousins! (Merry’s mother was Pippin’s father’s younger sister). Not only is it unimaginable, I think it’s illegal! The relationship between Merry and Pippin is more a brother-like relationship. As for Aragorn and Legolas/Boromir; I don’t think that anything was ever "suggested". Aragorn was respected, as a leader and a member of the Fellowship. In turn, he respected the other members of the Fellowship, especially Boromir, with whom he felt a brother like bond (with them both being men of Gondor, noblemen at that). Once again, no sexual attraction or romance. I really don’t understand the reason for writing such fics.

Argh! Now this is something that really annoys me. "I’ve only seen the movie, but this is what I think should happen", or "I’m only half way through the first book, and this is my story of what will happen next". The Two Towers is my favourite novel in the LotR series. Seeing people make guesses at what will happen in it nearly makes me ill. "Pippin and Merry are tortured and molested by the orcs." "Frodo dies in his quest to destroy the Ring." "Gandalf isn’t really dead [ok, well at least that’s true] and neither is Boromir. It was all just a dream." Argh! I can’t stand these fics! (Sorry, this section is going to turn out really bitchy) Most of the time in these stories, the author’s opinions of certain characters (especially Merry and Pippin) is carried through into their continuation. No development is made, and that was something that I loved about the LotR. So much character development is seen.

Many of the other fic "genres" sneak their way into the continuations. A Mary-Sue character may meet up with Frodo and Sam on their way to Mordor, or with Merry and Pippin when she rescues them from the orcs, or with Legolas, Aragorn and Gimli. Disliked characters meet with untimely and horrible deaths. Sam and Frodo fall in love on their journey. Ick!

These fics involve either a person (most often a teenage girl) being transported to Middle-Earth, where she becomes the tenth member of the Fellowship, or, the Fellowship is somehow transported to the real world. There’s really not much to be said, except that they are a primitive Mary-Sue type of story. The author is either too lazy, or does not have the writing skill to transform the person into an actual character, and just leaves them as they are. And as for the stories transporting the Fellowship to the real world, their only purpose is to place the characters in modern situations and as a result, humiliate the ones they don’t like, and praise the ones they do.

Stories About the Actors

Elijah Wood and Orlando Bloom have been in more movies than just The Lord of the Rings (Elijah, especially). So, why are there so many Elijah/Orlando (with the occasional Billy Boyd) stories popping up in the LotR section? This section is for stories about LotR and the related characters, NOT the actors that played them in the movie!

In conclusion, I know that there is nothing wrong with writing fics of the sort I have listed (except the last one. Surely there’s somewhere else you can put stories about actors!). Fanfiction mean precisely what it says, fiction written by fans. And fans can write what they please. But remember, LotR was someone else’s brainchild, so don’t ever treat it like it’s yours (thanks to Auma for suggesting I write that). What annoys me, is that people like myself – true LotR fans who have been waiting years for the movie, know the books back-to-front, constantly resite the poetry, can list the hobbits’ families back four generations, etc – have to sort through all of these stories to find something which actually interests them. (I know I’m being hypocritical by posting this, since it means yet another non-fic sort of thing that people like me have to skip past). I don’t want to read Legolas romances, because I can honestly say I don’t think that Legolas was ever meant to be a romantic sort of person. I don’t see any of the characters as being gay (though there would be nothing wrong if they were), so I don’t read the male-male stories. Still, I must say that at least one good thing has come out of this influx of LotR fanfiction. The movie – and these fics – has introduced a whole new "generation" of fans to Tolkien’s brilliance. The Legend of Middle-Earth and the Great Ring still lives; even if it has been a little distorted.