Happy Ten Years Today, SWG!

[dawn_felagund]

Today, the SWG officially turned ten years old! It was ten years ago today that ford_of_bruinen and I started encouraging our friends to join our nascent Silmarillion group. Ever since then, we have grown in ways that I would not have imagined possible on this day ten years ago, when I recall reaching ten members on our Yahoo! group and feeling such a giddy sense of accomplishment.

I recorded a video in honor of our birthday. It's pretty short, and you can see my dusty study and hear my Baltimore accent! What's not to love! :)

This last decade has been simply incredible to me. I never imagined the group taking off like it has. So many people have made the SWG what it is. You are to credit with what the group has become. Thank you all, from the bottom of my heart, for all that you have given to this community over the past ten years. Here's to many more!

(Also, a gentle reminder that the birthday cards will be closing soon. On August 1, I will take down the form and begin sending out the albums to recipients. If you want to send birthday cards and have not, our birthday card page can be found here.)

Comments

[pandemonium-213.livejournal.com]

Congratulations! Although I have been pretty much on hiatus lately, the SWG remains a solid fixture in my life. It's a fantastic archive, and you, Ford of B, Russandol, Rhapsy, Angelica, and other volunteers have set the tone for this expansive-of-thought and welcoming archive. To echo Oshun, the SWG is my fandom home.

Ironically, the SWG is, in part, responsible for my recent detachment from ficcish writing and other fandom activities. Thanks to writing first for the Chimp Refuge (and being picked up by SEED magazine) and then writing for the SWG, I gained the confidence to transition to my current career as a professional writer - although NOT fun fictional writing! Still, it pays the bills, and well, I love the work. :^)

Also, a gentle reminder that the birthday cards will be closing soon.

GAH! I need to get cracking. Between my personal laptop being in the shop (until 31 July) thanks to something stupid I did and to a lot of work with responses to questions from the FDA (OMG! That has been intense), I am behind. I aim to torment you and the other mods by sending in a flurry of greetings over the next two days. :^p

[dawn_felagund]

Please, torment me! ;) There has been a major uptick in card requests today since my friendly reminder yesterday, but I do not mind at all. Getting to read them is a regular dose of collateral happiness (some direct happiness since I get to read all of mine too :), and uploading them is smooth sailing now that most of the albums have been set up.

I never realized the extent to which the SWG played a role in your becoming a professional writer. I suppose I always thought you knew you were an awesome writer and took in professional opportunities accordingly! Although I miss your stories ... well, that's a pretty fine honor to have. :)

We share that commonality since success with my Tolkienfic and the SWG are what encouraged me to go for my English teaching certification and now my MA in humanities. Even though I probably would have always named writing as my best skill, I never saw it as something that I could make my life's work. It was a hobby and nothing more. Who knows what dull as dirt job I'd be doing if not for all this.

Thank you so much for all of your support over the years! :D