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The Rebel  by Lindelea 4 Review(s)
Tallis KeetonReviewed Chapter: 1 on 6/11/2015
> Hello, Tallis

Hello :)

> Your language is very clear!

thank you :) I have no many exercise of writing or speaking, though I allow myself to think about me as q. an inventive translator esp. fanficion.

> I know what you mean about filling in the gaps

Gapfillers are my fav. fanfics. Becouse I guess that there is much more work to be done in a story in which you must only fill the gaps after another author than in a original story, completely yours.

> Beregond was the character who got me started in all this, as a
> matter of fact.

Thats an uniqe choice for a hero to start with fanfiction writing. He is not very complex charachter rather. There is not enough for his story in LOTR, there are many gaps which is q. atractive thing for a fanfic writer. But its I think it should be more difficult to write - more difficult than f. example Merry or Frodo, or Aragorn.

> The glimpses we had of him in the story caught at myimagination

I have very warm feelings for this episode of LOTR :) This was one of very few topics which I realy regretted that did not get into Jackson's trilogy. I was sad becouse of the absence of 3 topics mostly.
1.
The coronation scene with Frodo handling (bringing?) the crown.
It is very symbolic and profound for this hero.
2.
The Scouring of the Shire.
As it is one of my fav. parts of all LOTR.
But I can understand that for such a long film production it was impossible to include this. Though maybe if they shortened a bit many of the longer battle scenes it could buy them about 10-15 minutes for the scouring?
But with the elimination of the Scouring topic the movie could've saved the more book scene of Saruman's death. I thought that it should be a scene with Saruman meeting Frodo and it was easily done in the movie. Becouse they met - actually before Shire. They met on the road north after the coronation when the hobbits and Gandalf and elven lords were returning from Gondor to northern realms and there is this exeptional dialoge between Gandalf and Saruman and Frodo. And I thought that maybe such a great director as Jackson should seen this scene as great chance to kill Saruman in more proper way :) without Shire's occupation yes, but with an arrow after Saruman's assasination of Frodo. And Frodo should release him to his doom. It will be such a great scene! The bowman there could be Legolas or one of the Rohan escort or both. In such movie scene Saruman should be shot by many arrows after his attack on the Ringbearer.
3.
The scene with Arwen and Frodo - their farewell and her gift to him - both the pendant and a place on the ship.
I think that becouse of much enhanced role of Arwen in the movie, the movie should bring this scene after the coronation scene. It could be merely 2 minutes longer movie and it would be great ending. Actually I always felt that the movie did not ended well the Arwen-Frodo relationship. There should be more for them. She saved him in the movie so the scene of their farewell should get into the movie. And the explanation of Frodo's leaving from Grey havens was not very well done in the movie. Or rather there was not any kind of explanation in my opinion. The scene with ending the book and Frodo's scar hurting is too weak explanation. It should be a scene with serious illness (deliric and painful) and Sam and Rosie care for him. And there was not any one for how he was allowed this voyage anyway as a mortal. Many ppl who dont know the book was asking after the movie - what is going on? Gandalf's extended hand was not a real explanation, though Gandalf was a Maia, but in the movie he was only old wizard and the movie needs some scene which explain to the viewers who did not read books - why and how Frodo was given this gift.

So years later - after much of the noise brought by this film is over - I rather think about those missing (very missing for me) scenes as this film greatest failures and as my favourite topics for good fanfiction. :) I actualy from time to time like to search for such scenes in post-movie, or movie inspired fanfics but what I can find is usually not very similar to these above topics. I mean as I can see it.
Recently I was in a mood to search for some fanfics which could be read as _movie_ gapfillers to Beregond's story (hint, hint) :) and I like that I could find so many pieces of this story in fanfiction.

I have an exeptional feeling for Beregond's story becouse of two things:
One is that he was not allowed into Jackson's masterpiece! which is sad becouse the Gondorian narration, Gondorian topic would be better, more fascinating with this serious politico-legal matter addition, a very handy topic for great, cold, marble halls :)
And as Jackson done miracles in the Rohan matters I was somewhat irritated by his shortening of Gondorian matters. :(
And two is becouse the king's decision (court verdict/jurisdiction) is very fine topic for me becouse I'm interested in legal topics - esp ethical and legal dilemmas in any fantasy book and that is becouse I'm a legal historian. So any topic with law and legal problems or with political system within any country (fictional as they are) is q. a delicacy to me :)

> I can well imagine him becoming friends with more than just the one
> hobbit.

Me too :) Beregond should be friendly to any hobbit.

> "Peace culture" versus "war culture" -- good food for thought!

If you want and if you can spare some time of course :) - I would like to send you my legal paper about the comparison of them. The Shire in my mind is such a peace culture
- without :
wars, imperial ambitions, strong military forces, jails, mafia, tortures, deprivation, slavery, gender gaps, hunger, maltreating of women and children, prostitution, rapists, organised thievs, corruption of offices, drugs and murders.
But of course there were some petty thieves like Lobelia and Lotho, and little tyrants but nothing serious.

> Sorry, I am rambling. But I take such joy in exchanging ideas with
> others whose imagination is all the richer for dabbling in Tolkien's
> world, I do get carried away.

And I too love to ramble about Middle Earth and about fanficion :) So nothing strange for me.
I'm happy to know Larner (one of my fav authors) becouse of our rare exchanges via email and I'm happy to know Tulip Proudfoot (another author) becouse of our not so rare exchanges via email too. Though with Larner I speak mostly about her fanfics and I comment them enthusiastically :)
And I gave her about 30 plotbunnies to this day :) But she used only 2 I think. :) Becouse she has not have time for more :) And with Tulip I talk also about a few other more personal things. A few times I exchanged emails with other great authors of fanfics - like Shirebound, Pearl Took, FBoBe, Virtuella or some others. Mostly becouse of my comments of their works or becouse I wanted to know how they felt about me doing translations of their works. :)

> I very much appreciate it.

Youre wellcome and I hope you can spare time to talk with me from time to time? :)
Becouse I too am eager to talk about fanfiction, becouse fanfiction is so important to me, esp becouse I like to translate it. And becouse it is an enhance of my fav literary world. And the heroes of this world are for me as old friends with whom I love o visit :)

Greetings from your fan :)
Tallis Keeton

And as I can not - to save my life :) - write very good fanfiction esp. not in english (though I wrote 5 or 6 short pieces in polish) that is my garden for you for exchenge for your great stories :)

I always hope that it could be seen as very Shire-like :)

http://talliskeeton.deviantart.com/art/My-Garden-41-511767248?q=gallery%3ATallisKeeton%2F22356034&qo=11

http://talliskeeton.deviantart.com/art/Orchard-In-Spring-511768612?q=gallery%3ATallisKeeton%2F22356034&qo=7

http://talliskeeton.deviantart.com/art/my-garden-493172147?q=gallery%3ATallisKeeton%2F22356034&qo=67

http://talliskeeton.deviantart.com/art/a-bit-of-garden-511042158?q=gallery%3ATallisKeeton%2F22356034&qo=23

http://talliskeeton.deviantart.com/art/my-orchard-in-autumn-510858271?q=gallery%3ATallisKeeton%2F22356034&qo=29

http://talliskeeton.deviantart.com/art/a-flower-511041235?q=gallery%3ATallisKeeton%2F22356034&qo=24

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http://talliskeeton.deviantart.com/art/My-garden-34-493171726?q=gallery%3ATallisKeeton%2F22356034&qo=68


Tallis KeetonReviewed Chapter: 1 on 6/1/2015
Hello :)
I'm your fan :) I've read some of your ff - Jewels, To Tell a Tale, Let Sleeping Dogs Lie, In the Greening of the Year, Life Watch, and recently I was moved by As the Gentle Rain, and I want to reread Life Watch, and to read Where the Merlin Cries - becouse I just like ffs about Sam's children a lot, and now I just started reading The Rebel.
Well, as to The Rebel - I like that someone choses such rare topics as this one. Becouse I think that there is much to little ffs about events that took place on the travel route of the Fellowship but _after_ they were gone. I was always interested in what was going on in Rivendell after the departure of the Fellowship (I mean the interactions between Elrond and Bilbo or Arwen and Bilbo), or what was in the Shire after Frodo and company left it. In ffs I've always look for some scenes that - I think - should be in the book but which never get there - for example the dialogues and interactions between the charachters who should have known each other at some time but we did not see it in the book - for example - I would like to see a scene between Beregond and Frodo, or Eowyn and Ioreth, or Elrond and Imrahil or Gimli and Faramir. There are some ff with the meetings of ppl who should have known each other q.well at some point but whose conversantions are not in the book - like Gimli and Frodo or Pippin and Eowyn, or Merry and Ioreth and such kind of ff I like a lot. But the ff with a meeting of some persons about who we know that they should heve known each other but who we did not seen together in books - that is a rare thing. And I'm constantly looking for such stories. I would like very much to read ff about a meeting between Beregond and Frodo in Minas Tirith. I liked fanfics with Frodo meeting with Eowyn, or Pippin meeting with Eowyn or Faramir conversation with Merry. But I've never seen ff with Beregond meeting with _any other_ hobbit than Pippin.
And as to the Rebel - I like how in your fanfic hobbits are such innocent folk - who did not know about _hanging_. I always liked when I found that in some ff there is such big distance between cultures of men and elves, and culture of hobbits. It is so important to my personal vision of cultures of ME. Esp. becouse I imagine Shire culture as a "peace culture" vs. other cultures as "war cultures". There was never a murderer between hobbits, and so I liked to imagine that they did knot know many types of our popular crimes like drugs, kidnapping, slavery and torture and killing, well, the least kind of agression as I could imagine for them is some fist fight in the pub after too much drinking - thats all. :) There were petty thieves I think becouse Lobelia was one, so there should be more of them. But as to the serious fighting and killing - even beating their own children - no, in my opinion hobbits never knew either why or how. But of course there could be some nasty persons like old miller Sandyman who - as I imagine would go to some fighting when drunk. Or even maybe would beat his son.
When I started to read about this hanging in The Rebel - I remembered other fanfic wrote by - I dont remember who really :) - in which young Frodo is accidently injured by arrows becouse he was walking in the woods and the hunters were there wainting in a trap for a deer. And Frodo - hurting as he was - was asking in such inoffensive, innocent way why the hunters would like to kill such a great, free creature? - does it hurt them or smt? And it was sooo basic, sooo thoughtful and innocent. It shows how hobbits cannot understand violece at all. Why?, for what? That is their first asking question. For what you want to kill? You are not hungry or are you defencing or avenging something? If not - why? The hobbits asking in your story "what is hanging?" are so similar to this Frodo from that other story - Frodo who does not understand violence. Becouse he does not feel it as a need in himself, becouse as Tolkien once wrote he was against it from his education and from his kind of culture in which he lived. He was not brought up in violent way of thinking. In a way of thinking about violence as elemental, basic strategy, as basic need to survive. The Shire culture was not in a need of surviving by such means. For centuries they were farmers and gatherers. Not hunters and warriors. And they even did not know jails - only after Saruman has politely introduced them to it :) - which is another similarity between Tolkien's Shire and our real "peace cultures".
Greetings from your fan :)

And I m sorry for any mistakes in english - hope you can understand my language?



Author Reply: Hello, Tallis, and thank you so much for taking the time to share your thoughts!

I have been away from the fanfic the last two weeks, not even having time to read and leave a comment for the authors I follow, and so I apologize for this late reply to your encouraging words.

Your language is very clear!

I know what you mean about filling in the gaps -- imagining scenes between characters that are likely to have taken place, encounters, conversations, discoveries, surprises, finding differences and common ground between people and cultures.

Beregond was the character who got me started in all this, as a matter of fact. The glimpses we had of him in the story caught at my imagination, and I wanted to know more. I was also bothered by the scene where Elessar judged him -- stringing things out the way it sounds in the book seemed cruel to me, and my idea of Strider was definitely *not* cruel, so I had to figure out an explanation that satisfied me. (Which I think you read in LifeWatch, but if not there, it is definitely in To See Justice Done. I have been accused of writing the same story over and over again. *sigh* I guess that's a fair appraisal, but I can't seem to help myself.)

As you've seen, Beregond becomes fast friends with Freddy. (Well, maybe you haven't seen that in so many words, you've only seen him being formal and Captain-of-the-Guard-ish in As the Gentle Rain, but I can assure you, there is an unwritten scene where he and Freddy are relaxing at the end of a long day, each with a glass of wine, Beregond's long legs stretched out before him, sipping appreciatively and gently chaffing each other. (Probably while waiting for Prince Faramir to finish with some business or other.) With the lively curiosity he shows on meeting Pippin, I can well imagine him becoming friends with more than just the one hobbit.

"Peace culture" versus "war culture" -- good food for thought! You're right, that is very much how I see the Shire. I took an offhand comment of Tolkien's, where Frodo said that a hobbit had *never* killed another hobbit on purpose, and sort of applied it to the entire Shire. (I suppose if Gollum is a true hobbit and not just from a related folk, that the statement might not be entirely true -- but then, Smeagol was already under the influence of the Ring when he killed Deagol, so perhaps Frodo's statement stands, even so.)

Sorry, I am rambling. But I take such joy in exchanging ideas with others whose imagination is all the richer for dabbling in Tolkien's world, I do get carried away.

Again, many thanks for taking the time here (and at the other fanfic website, a place I hope to return to posting updates, if my schedule would just cooperate). I very much appreciate it.

Speedy HobbitReviewed Chapter: 1 on 6/18/2014
Being stuck in the Hills with the last of the food is a horrible situation. Hunger's an equalizer for sure, yikes! Poor rebels! I'd say I hope they escape, but I already know from reading this before and Tolkien that Hills of Scary- no, they are definitely going to be in the Lockholes, poor fellows.

Author Reply: Goodness, I am a year belated in replying to this review. If I might excuse myself by saying this is the first time I've seen it? At this time last year, we were in the middle of a month of traveling, and access to the web and email was intermittent at best.

Poor fellows, indeed. I remember wondering just how many hobbits of the Shire ended up in the Lockholes... (I didn't get the impression that it was a huge percentage, hobbits being the peaceful people that they are, but there must have been at least a hundred, and maybe I'm selling them short, at that) ...and it was a pleasure to write their liberation, at the end of this story.

Again, many thanks for the good words. Hearing from readers certainly can jolly the Muse into a better mood. Even better than chocolate, it seems.

trishetteReviewed Chapter: 1 on 9/27/2003
A Fatty Bolger story... those are such a rarity... I no longer seem to be the only one actually doing a story centering around Fredegar Bolger! I can only imagine the fear they must be feeling.. especially the central character Fredegar, who is worrying about being strung up by his neck from a tree. Please continue this!

Author Reply: You are writing a Fatty Bolger story, too? I know another person who is! Perhaps he will be the next trend in LOTR fanfiction. As soon as I finish writing this, I will seek out your story. Is it here on SoA?

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