21st Century Tolkien

[Azaelia of Willowbottom]

I feel like fandom is already changing. I came on the boat in '01, just before the movies came out.

The arc of my personal fandom goes something like this.

In January of '00, I was fascinated by the covers of the books that a couple of my classmates were reading, and decided to find a copy for myself. At that time I was primarily a Star Wars geek, and mainly into the sort of fast-paced books and movies that sort of fit into that particular genre. The books were, in short, a little too slow for me. I made it all the way through FOTR, but quit at that point. There was a sense of something great there, tantalizing, just out of my reach, but I just wasn't ready for it. I put the copies of the book back on the shelf, feeling vaguely disappointed in myself for not being mature enough to read them.

I then went on and forgot about them. Almost a year passed. I became sick of Star Wars. And then, in November of '01, I saw the trailer for FOTR. I was entranced. (Honestly, in retrospect, Frodo probably had a big part in this. What can I say? I was a 13 year old.) I thought, "Now is the time". So I got my mom's books back out again, and fell into Middle-earth. Every page was exhilerating. I was caught, hook, line, and sinker. I was wandering in Middle-earth, and loving every beautiful second.
Shortly after finishing the books, I hit the internet. I'd been familiar with the Star Wars online community, and it only took a few seconds of thinking to realize that there had to be something out there for LOTR fans. And so I hit google. And found the Barrow-Downs...the first Tolkien forum I joined. Honestly, at first, it was a little much for me. I was a book fan, but I wasn't ready for such complex literary discussion, and everyone seemed so much older than me. I faded into the background, watched and listened, and learned.

The next phase has no determined beginning. Gradually, I got back into the Barrow-Downs, and found that I generally understood everything people were saying, and that I could contribute to discussions. My fandom now is different than it was before. I participate in discussion more. I feel like I know more about Tolkien than I did before. I learned how to write in tengwar, and I've finished the Sil (Except for the last few pages--they're the last new Tolkien thing I'll ever read, so I'm saving them for a special occasion. I'm a little too attached, and I want to save the exhileration of reading new Middle-earth material.) I was never a leggybopper (gasp! no!), but I still appreciate the movies. I am, however, swinging more toward the books at the moment. I go back and forth. Either way, I'm enjoying every minute of the experience.

As for fandom itself, I think we're mostly back the way things were before the movies, numbers-wise. During the movies and the time immediately after, fandom got a huge influx of fans from the movies, many of whom hadn't read the books, and probably never would. There were, however, a handful of them who would read the books, stay on, and become just as knowledgeable on Tolkien as anyone else. People drift in and drift out, but I think that for the most part, the number has stabilized again.

I haven't had time this year for my yearly re-reading of LOTR, but I am planning on starting it again on Wednesday, when I have a half day of school. I haven't seen ROTK or TTT since ROTK went out of the theaters. I am going through Tolkien withdrawal.

Over all, I can't say if all that has happened was good for fandom or not, but fandom is an ever-evolving, changing entity, and it just took it all in stride. Things will never be the way they were before the movies again, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

I'm proud that I stayed on in fandom after November 2001. I'm very glad I chose to give Tolkien a second chance. And I am so happy to have walked in Middle-earth with all of you. I feel like you've all watched me grow up. When I came, I was an eighth grader. I am now about to graduate from high school and hit the road for college, to persue a career in acting (which was inspired by the movies). So excuse any oversentiment that may be present. I love the Downs. I love fandom. And I love Middle-earth. No matter what may change in the personality of Tolkien fans as a whole, that will always be true.