B2MeM 2014:: Seasons of Middle-earth: Prompt Claims

[dawn_felagund]

This is the post where you will claim the prompt you want to work on for B2MeM 2014: Seasons of Middle-earth. Below are instructions for claiming a prompt and the prompt list. Please make sure that you have carefully read the expectations and guidelines before claiming your prompt.

Prompt claims are now CLOSED. If you are interested in writing for B2MeM this year, you are welcome to play with any of the prompts and post your fanworks to the community during the month of March. We will have special days set aside for revealing pieces that weren't created for the compilation. See this post for more information on how to share work that wasn't created for the compilation.

Instructions for Claiming a Prompt

1. The first phase of prompt claims will run from 12 January to 22 January. During this time, each participant will be allowed to claim one writing prompt and one art prompt. (Yes, that means that if you are both a writer and an artist, then you can claim a total of two prompts.)
2. The second phase of prompt claims will begin 23 January to 21 February. During this time, all participants can claim extra prompts if they want to. If you do not think you can complete it, please do not claim it.
3. All claims will close on 21 February at 11:59 PM GMT. We will not accept additional claims after that time.
4. To claim your prompt, copy the form below, paste it into a comment, and fill it out. Only list second and third prompt choices if you would be willing to create something for that prompt if your first choice is not available. If your first-choice prompt is the only prompt you truly want to work with, then please do not list alternate choices.
5. If you are claiming a writing and art prompt, post a new comment for each prompt you claim.
6. Because it is possible for the same prompt to be claimed by a writer and an artist, then the possibility exists for the two to collaborate. If you'd be willing to collaborate with a writer (for an art claim) or an artist (for a writing claim), then answer YES for collaboration. This does not mean that you will be required to collaborate; it only means that, if the prompt is claimed by a writer and artist who both agree to collaborate, we will put you in touch with each other so that you can discuss if you want to work together or separately.
7. Do not start working on your piece until you receive an email from us, confirming the prompt you've been assigned. If you do not hear from us within a day, feel free to query at b2mem.mod@gmail.com. We will fill in the prompt chart as prompts are claimed, but understandably, there will be lag time between new claims and the chart being updated.

To claim a prompt, copy the form below, paste it into a comment, and fill it out. All comments are screened, and no comment including contact information will be unscreened.

Name:
Email:
Claiming WRITING or ART:
First Choice Prompt:
Second Choice Prompt (if first choice is not available): (optional)
Third Choice Prompt (if first and second choices are not available): (optional)
Collaboration? YES or NO

Prompt List

March 1 Due Date February 22
Prompt	Writer	Artist
"Four Seasons in One Day" by Crowded House (Lyrics)
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: The Four Seasons	ninquetari
Summer (March 2-8) Due Date February 26
Prompt	Writer	Artist
Write a story or create art about the midsummer holiday (Lithe, Gates of Summer, or another midsummer holiday of your choosing).		oloriel
"On the appointed day, on the morning of Midsummer, the trumpets of the Eldar greeted the rising of the sun; and in the east was raised the standard of the sons of Fëanor, and in the west the standard of Fingon, High King of the Noldor." (The Silmarillion, "Of the Fifth Battle: Nirnaeth Arnoediad") What if the outcome of one of the battles of Middle-earth was different? How would history have changed?	astris_eldalie
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Bright Summer	jenn_calaelen
The summer romance is a common trope--almost regarded as a rite of passage--in many modern films and stories. Write or create art about a summer romance.		engarian
"There the air was cool and there wayfarers in summer would rest and drink of the cold water." (Children of Húrin)	baranduin
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Love of Books	raise_the_knife
hot summer days	linndechir
Tolkien's stories frequently feature cities, dynasties, or entire groups of people who rise and then fall in importance. Write or create art about a place or group that is at the height of its achievement.	kittotter
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: "Suns...plash!" by Mirach	ladyelleth
For many people, summertime brings the chance to travel for pleasure. Take your character on a trip to a place he or she has always wanted to visit. Write or create art about what happens.	wheelrider
Use the following song to inspire your writing or artwork: "One Summer Dream" by the Electric Light Orchestra (Lyrics)	rhapsody11
thunderstorms	Fadesintothewest
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: "Under the High Sky" by Mirach	indy1776
It's time for the summer fruits and berries: strawberries and blackberries are abundant, and in some places the trees droop with peaches and plums. The tomatoes and cucumbers are ripe on the vine. Create a story or a work of art featuring a Summer seasonal food. Bonus for including a recipe.	rhymer23
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Morning After	iavalir
"Each year at summer’s end I go to find them for her, In a wide pool, deep and clear…" (Fellowship of the Ring, "In the House of Tom Bombadil")
Autumn (March 9-14) Due Date March 5
Prompt	Writer	Artist
Yáviérë	aliana1
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Morning, Autumn Landscape With Trees (Grubicy de Dragon)	raise_the_knife
Durin's Day
It's harvest time! Time to reap and thresh and store the grain; to pick the apples and pears; put the root vegetables into cellars and fill the larders with preserves. Create a story or a work of art featuring a Fall seasonal food. Bonus for including a recipe.	helenllama
In many parts of the world, autumn brings the start of the school year. Write or create art about a character's education.	tanis2014
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Autumn Forest	ljusastjarnan
harvest	suzll
"He found himself wondering at times, especially in the autumn, about the wild lands, and strange visions of mountains that he had never seen came into his dreams." (Fellowship of the Ring, "The Shadow of the Past")	ladyelleth
Tolkien's stories frequently feature cities, dynasties, or entire groups of people who rise and then fall in importance. Write or create art from the point of view of a character facing the beginning of the downfall of his or her society.	vega_ofthe_lyre
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Spider's Web	aearwen2
"There came a night of autumn, and when it grew late, one came and smote upon the doors of Menegroth, demanding admittance to the King." (The Silmarillion, "Of the Ruin of Doriath") Write a story or create art where the arrival of an unexpected messenger at any place in Middle-earth changes the course of events.	lin4gondor
leaves drifting in the breeze	idleleaves
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Feet in Chains	lin4gondor
Use the following song to inspire your writing or artwork: "Autumnal" by Arcana (Lyrics)	dawn_felagund
"And these trees grew and grew, till the shadow of each was like a green hall, and their red berries in the autumn were a burden, and a beauty and a wonder." (The Two Towers, "Treebeard") In many parts of the world, autumn brings with it some of the most beautiful scenery of the year, yet that beauty is also touched with sorrow. Write or create art about something that is both beautiful and tragic.	ilye_elf
Ides of March (March 15) Due Date March 8
Prompt	Writer	Artist
"I sit beside the fire and think of all that I have seen, of meadow-flowers and butterflies in summers that have been; Of yellow leaves and gossamer in autumns that there were, with morning mist and silver sun and wind upon my hair. I sit beside the fire and think of how the world will be when winter comes without a spring that I shall ever see. For still there are so many things that I have never seen: in every wood in every spring there is a different green. I sit beside the fire and think of people long ago, and people who will see a world that I shall never know. But all the while I sit and think of times there were before, I listen for returning feet and voices at the door." (Fellowship of the Ring, "The Ring Goes South")	elliska
Winter (March 16-22) Due Date March 12
Prompt	Writer	Artist
Write a story or create art about the midwinter holiday (Yule or another midwinter holiday of your choosing).	heartofoshun	dawn_felagund
"My heart will be glad, even in the winter." (Fellowship of the Ring, "Lothlórien") Winter brings with it the darkest time of the year but also a return to light. Write or create art about a moment in a character's life when she or he began to perceive hope in the midst of darkness.	lin4gondor	elliska
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Lapland	raise_the_knife
winter weather	pandemonium_213	huinare
"Let us think that at this midwinter the feast shall be merrier than in all our years yet, with a fearless spring to follow after!" (Children of Húrin)	adlanth	moetushie
"'For our spring and our summer are gone by, and they will never be seen on earth again save in memory.'" (Galadriel, The Fellowship of the Ring, "Farewell to Lórien") Write or create art about a character who has reached old age.	engarian	mirach_ravaia
A blizzard rages outside and makes travel impossible. Two or more characters are trapped indoors together until the storm passes. Write or create art about what happens.	keiliss
The turning of the year brings feasts and holidays. It's time to enjoy the bounty that was saved for the winter. Create a story or a work of art featuring a Winter seasonal food. Bonus for including a recipe.	curiouswombat
"They came at unawares in the middle of winter." (The Silmarillion, "Of the Ruin of Doriath") Write a story or create art where betrayal and revenge play a central role.	ljusastjarnan	mangacrack
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Flames	jedimasterstar
Tolkien's stories frequently feature cities, dynasties, or entire groups of people who rise and then fall in importance. Write or create art about a place or group that is no longer important.	brookeoflorien
"There came a time of winter, when night was dark and without moon; and the wide plain of Ard-galen stretched dim beneath the cold stars, from the hill-forts of the Noldor to the feet of Thangorodrim. The watch-fires burned low, and the guards were few; on the plain few were waking in the camps of the horsemen of Hithlum." (The Silmarillion, "Of the Ruin of Beleriand and the Fall of Fingolfin") Write a story or create art from the point of view of the foot soldiers or horsemen who participated in any of the battles in Middle-earth.	astris_eldalie	hrymfaxe
staying warm against the wintry weather	seanlijahlove
Use the following song to inspire your writing or artwork: "Crystal Forest" by Nox Arcana	hhimring
"'Winter and snow will bite both men and elves…'" (Thorin, The Hobbit, "A Thief in the Night")	sigridhr
Use the following song to inspire your writing or artwork: "Exile" by Enya	paranoidangel42	ladyelleth
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Winter	knowmefirst	knowmefirst
Spring (March 23-29) Due Date March 19
Prompt	Writer	Artist
Tuilérë	ignoblebard
"The dragon was dead, and the goblins overthrown, and their hearts looked forward after winter to a spring of joy." (The Hobbit, "The Return Journey") Tolkien's stories frequently feature cities, dynasties, or entire groups of people who rise and then fall in importance. Write or create art about a place or group that is beginning its rise in importance.
flowers peeking above the snow
"Then, as a sweet rain will pass down a wind of spring and the sun will shine out the clearer, his tears ceased, and his laughter welled up, and laughing he sprang from his bed." (Return of the King, "The Field of Cormallen")	blslarner	blslarner
Use the following song to inspire your writing or artwork: "Return of the Birds" by the Mediæaval Bæbes (Lyrics and translation)	moetushie	Adanwen
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Spring Landscape	cairistiona7
Your character gets caught in a spring rainstorm. What happens next?	binkaslibrary
Use the following song to inspire your writing or artwork: "O Lusty May" by Ensemble Estampie	the_winterwitch	the_winterwitch
Write or create art in which a character plants something. (What she or he plants can be literal or metaphorical!)	tehta	dreamflower02
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Garden in Spring	lindahoyland
"Spring surpassed his wildest hopes. His trees began to sprout and grow, as if time was in a hurry and wished to make one year do for twenty." (Return of the King, "The Grey Havens")	zopyrus
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Sunrise	burning_night
In spring the greens are shooting up in gardens and in the wild; the streams are teaming with fish, and the hens are laying. Create a story or a work of art featuring a Spring seasonal food. Bonus for including a recipe.	dreamflower02
Use the following image to inspire your writing or artwork: Pool Water Texture
"In that time the air of Middle-earth became heavy with the breath of growth and mortality, and the changing and ageing of all things was hastened exceedingly; life teemed upon the soil and in the waters in the Second Spring of Arda, and the Eldar increased, and beneath the new Sun Beleriand grew green and fair." (The Silmarillion, "Of Men") Mortality, change, growth are key elements to define the different race in Middle-earth. Write a story or create art where these topics play a central role.	mirach_ravaia
March 30-31 Due Date March 23
Prompt	Writer	Artist
"In the willow-meads of Tasarinan I walked in the Spring. Ah! the sight and the smell of the Spring in Nan-tasarion! And I said that was good. I wandered in Summer in the elm-woods of Ossiriand. Ah! the light and the music in the Summer by the Seven Rivers of Ossir! And I thought that was best. To the beeches of Neldoreth I came in the Autumn. Ah! the gold and the red and the sighing of leaves in the Autumn in Taur-na-neldor! It was more than my desire. To the pine-trees upon the highland of Dorthonion I climbed in the Winter. Ah! the wind and the whiteness and the black branches of Winter upon Orod-na-Thôn! My voice went up and sang in the sky. And now all those lands lie under the wave, And I walk in Ambarona, in Tauremorna, in Aldalómë, In my own land, in the country of Fangorn, Where the roots are long, And the years lie thicker than the leaves In Tauremornalómë. After finishing this song Treebeard walked on silently through the silent woods." (The Two Towers, "Treebeard")	kinirohana
"April Come She Will" by Simon & Garfunkel	aliana1

Comments

[dawn_felagund]

If you need an extension, that is fine. Just please let us know as soon as possible if you are going to be late and let us know when you can turn the piece in so that we can plan the posting schedule accordingly.

[jedimasterstar.livejournal.com]

I have a question and I didn't know where to ask. I've thinking about doing the midsummer holiday one but in Middle-earth is Lithe the same is Beltane? I want to make sure that I am accurately doing it right. I'm still learning about it all.

Sorry if this is the wrong place to ask.

[dawn_felagund]

This is a fine place to ask questions if you have them! :) Beltane is the mid-spring festival typically celebrated (at least in the tradition I observe) on May 1, while Lithe is a midsummer holiday, so June 21 (summer solstice) on our calendar. I found some information on Lithe here, here, and here. If I or one of the other mods can provide any further assistance, just ask away! :)

[kayleelupin.livejournal.com]

What do I do if I want to write for the prompts (as many prompts as possible) without "claiming" them? Am I allowed to post what I write during the general period when each prompt is marked off there, or do I have to wait until B2MEM is over, or can I not post them at all?

Kaylee Arafinwiel

[huinare.livejournal.com]

You're welcome to write for any prompts that strike your fancy during the month, without claiming them. You can post them in this community, but only on days designated as "non-compilation" days. =) See also this post. (http://b2mem.livejournal.com/248866.html)

[dawn_felagund]

The only thing I'd add to Huin's reply is that you can post anytime during March to this community, but non-compilation posts will only be unlocked on certain days (Sundays, except for the last week, which will be Saturday.) You can post B2MeM pieces to other sites, such as MPTT or your personal journal, at any time during the month of March or after.

A few days before B2MeM begins, I will be making a post about how to share non-compilation pieces on the community.

[dawn_felagund]

As long as the piece hasn't been posted anywhere, then finishing a WiP that happens to match up with one of the prompts is not only acceptable but sounds like a perfect opportunity. :) I just sent your prompt confirmation.