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(written by zdenka )

Summary The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrún is a set of two narrative poems by Tolkien based on stories from Norse mythology: Völsungakviða en nýja (The New Lay of the Völsungs) and Guðrúnarkviða en nýja (The New Lay of Gudrún). Despite their Norse titles, these poems are in English, composed in alliterative verse.

Like The Silmarillion, "The New Lay of the Völsungs" begins with the creation of the world. It then follows the descent of the legendary Völsung family, ending with Sigurd the Dragonslayer. The poem recounts Sigurd's heroic deeds and the complicated entanglements of oaths, love, and betrayal that develop between Sigurd, the former Valkyrie Brynhild, the warrior lord Gunnar, and Gunnar's sister Gudrún.

"The New Lay of Gudrún" continues the story of Gudrún after Sigurd's murder: her grief for Sigurd, her second marriage to Atli (a mythologized version of Attila the Hun), the trap Atli lays for Gudrún's brothers, and the terrible fate of Atli and Gudrún's children.

Why Should I Check Out This Canon? It's a dramatic story of heroism, torn loyalties, fate, love, and hatred! If you enjoy those themes in Tolkien's other works, you'll find them here too.

If you've enjoyed Norse myths or other versions of the Sigurd story, you might also like this one.

If you liked Tolkien's poetry in The Lord of the Rings or the Lays of Beleriand, here's another hoard of it. He makes writing alliterative verse look easy.

You also get a look at some of the sources for Tolkien's Middle-earth works. I don't mean only the plot elements that have been noted by many literary critics, such as the similarities of Túrin's dragon-slaying adventure to Sigurd's. Having these legends in Tolkien's own words can help show the connections he made in his own mind between Norse legend and his Legendarium. Taking just one stanza as an example:

The Gods gathered on golden thrones, of doom and death deeply pondered, how fate should be fended, their foes vanquished, their labour healed, light rekindled.

That sounds a lot like the Valar in the Silmarillion, doesn't it? And there are plenty more resemblances to find.

Where Can I Get This? Your local bookstore or library, or the Internet Archive.

What Fanworks Already Exist? There is one work in Russian on AO3, a fic cross-tagged with the Silmarillion; I don't know Russian, but it seems to be a darker take on the Beren and Lúthien story. (The AO3 tag is here.)

One work from b2mem here, a recording of four stanzas from "The New Lay of the Völsungs" set to music and sung. Full Disclosure: This one is by me.

In other words, if you want to create fanworks for this, the field is wide open!

(written by narya_flame ; the moodboard is also Narya's work!)

Summary: A shorter, darker Tolkien text telling the tragic story of two doomed lovers, drawing on Breton myth and legend.

Why should I check out this canon? If you’re into oaths and bargains, questions of fate, courtly love, rules-lawyering, witchy women, magic, myth, tragedy, etymology, or Celtic folklore (and let’s face it, if you’re hanging out in the Tolkien fandom you probably like at least a few of those things!) then this poem may just be your discovery of the summer. You’re also getting several texts for the price of one – the main poem was published together with two earlier ‘Corrigan’ texts, which are full of darkly magical possibilities for the adventurous fan writer to explore.

Where can I get this? Since 2016 it’s been available as a standalone book edited by Verlyn Flieger – your local bookseller or public library should be able to order in a copy if they don’t have one already, and of course the usual online shopping platforms are available. There is also a copy available on the Internet Archive.

What fanworks already exist? At time of writing, there are 10 works on AO3.

(written by narya_flame )

Summary: You may be familiar with the Greek myth of Orpheus, who entered the Underworld to bring his beloved Eurydice back from death (and even if you don’t know it, you might be noticing similarities between a certain man and half-Maia of Silmarillion fame).  ‘Sir Orfeo’ is a Middle English poem which relocates the story to England and weaves in elements of Celtic myth and folklore.  Tolkien’s translation of the poem was published together with ‘Sir Gawain and the Green Knight’ and ‘Pearl’, plus his commentary on all three texts.

Why should I check out this canon? You’ll spot plenty of familiar Middle-earth motifs in this text; opportunities for crossover shenanigans are plentiful!  There’s some fascinating stuff to play around with in terms of the nature of Faery (let’s just say the Otherworld depicted in this poem is a startling departure from the takes on Faery that we might be more familiar with these days – the perilous realm indeed).  If you’re artistically inclined then there are some amazing scenes and images just crying out to be illustrated.  It’s also a great text for examining how myths evolve over time and absorb influences of the cultures retelling them.

Where can I get this? Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, together with Pearl and Sir Orfeo was first published in 1975, so there are several editions available – try your preferred bookshop, online retailer, or public library.  (If you feel like treating yourself, or someone else with a love of Tolkien or Medieval literature, there is an absolutely gorgeous 2020 hardcover edition complete with slip case.)   The 1975 edition is available as a PDF on the Internet Archive.

What fanworks already exist?  There are currently 5 works on AO3.

(Written by narya_flame )

Summary: Sellic Spell ('strange tale', 'wondrous tale') is a short prose tale which attempts to reconstruct the folk story behind Beowulf, and also draws inspiration from the Norse Hrólfs saga kraka.  It mostly follows the plot of Beowulf, up to the death of Grendel's mother.

Why should I check out this canon? If you're a fan of folk tales and fairy stories, and/or you're interested in Beowulf and Tolkien's responses to that text, this one is for you!  It has magic and horror, heroism and treachery, treasure and monsters, and can be read and enjoyed on its own merits, whether you're familiar with the source material or not.  For the linguistically minded, the 2016 edition of Tolkien's Beowulf also includes the Old English version of the tale - and if your comfort zone is the Middle-earth legendarium, there are plenty of little links you'll pick up on as you read.

Where can I get this? The manuscript is held at the Bodleian library, but for those of us who can't access the Oxford special collections, it was published in 2016 alongside Tolkien's translation of Beowulf.  It's also available as a free PDF courtesy of the Internet Archive.

What fanworks already exist? At the moment there are three fanworks on AO3 - a drabble from the point of view of the Queen of the Golden Hall, an encounter between the Queen and Grinder's mother, and a crossover with The Hobbit which blends the tale with the history of the Beornings.

Summary: The New Shadow is an unfinished manuscript for a sequel to Lord of the Rings, published in The Peoples of Middle Earth (ch. 10). Tolkien only ever wrote 12 pages for the sequel, detailing a scene between Borlas and Saelon, two men of Gondor living in Minas Tirith in 220 F.A., well into the reign of King Eldarion. Borlas meets Saelon, who is a friend of the former’s son, and they discuss an orc cult that has begun to grow in popularity in recent years. Tolkien is stated to not have finished the story because he felt that plunging Middle Earth back into a “dark era” after the war of the ring didn’t match the ethos of the work preceding it (but personally, I would have liked to see where he took the idea!).

Why should I check out this canon? Though it was abandoned by Tolkien, there are some very interesting bits of worldbuilding in The New Shadow that aren't really in other Legendarium texts, including orc cults and development of Gondorian society after the reign of Elessar! There is also some great potential for Human and Orc OCs, and exploring the longer-term aftermath of The War of the Ring.

Where can I get this? It is published as chapter 16 of The Peoples of Middle Earth (part 4), which you can source through:

What fanworks exist already?