Bonus gift: here are the first and last pages of the typescript from Tolkien’s manuscripts shared via an exclusive Telegraph piece yesterday - notice the title in Tolkien’s recognisable hand! (Here’s the Telegraph piece, though behind a paywall: www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/06...) 3/3

When @lukebshelton.bsky.social and I commissioned Andoni Cossio and Nelson Goering to write the Oxford Handbook of J.R.R. Tolkien chapter on Tolkien as a scholar, I knew they’d do an amazing job (they did!) But was even happier to find out they made this discovery whilst researching the chapter! 2/3

NEW TOLKIEN JUST OUT: delighted to see “JRR #Tolkien’s Soul’s Ward: A critical edition of his unpublished translation of the early Middle English homily Sawles Warde” edited by Andoni Cossio and Nelson Goering: academic.oup.com/res/advance-... Chuffed to have played a minor role in this 1/3

Happy pride month, all!

You can completely uninstall/disable copilot on Windows. Your system and local search will run faster afterward. www.howtogeek.com/how-to-rip-o...

Can people who have read The Lord of the Rings take a second to answer my poll question? This is for a conference presentation I am giving later this month! #Tolkien #LordOfTheRings

Can people who have read The Lord of the Rings take a second to answer my poll question? This is for a conference presentation I am giving later this month! #Tolkien #LordOfTheRings

When Tolkien says that the trees in Lothlorien have 'golden' leaves and 'silver' bark, do you interpret that literally or metaphorically? 1️⃣ Literally (colors are like metal and jewelry) 2️⃣ Metaphorically (colors like yellow and white/grey) 3️⃣ Other (describe with a comment) 📊 Show results

Can people who have read Lord of teh Rings take a second to helWhen Tolkien says that the trees in Lothlorien have 'golden' leaves and 'silver' bark, do you interpret that literally or metaphorically? 1️⃣ Literally (like metal and jewelry) 2️⃣ Metaphorically (like yellow and white/grey) 📊 Show results

This was a great conversation! Do give it a listen if you want to hear me talk way too much about methodology, haha!

Latest episode of the Tolkien Pop! Podcast just dropped! Got to sit down with @lukebshelton.bsky.social of @tolkiensociety.org to talk about his Tolkien experience, area of research, and his current and future work in Tolkien studies podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

I was recently asked what I think about Stephen Colbert’s announcement that he is going to make a Tolkien movie. Honestly, I don’t mind having more adaptations of LotR available in popular media.

Okay, I think I may have figured something out (and I am probably pretty late to this realization): the people who comment on news stories with hateful comments are the same people who wanted to be good at riffing on movies like MST3K because they thought it would make them cool.

Brutal.

✨Tolkien Society Seminar 2025 videos are up on YouTube✨ If you missed the seminar or want to revisit some of the talks, head over to the Society’s YouTube page to relive the magic ✨

The deadline to submit a paper or presentation is by the end of the day today! Don’t miss out, I would love to see you there! #westmoot #tolkien #tolkiensociety

This is just insane. It’s only a matter of time before DHS kills another innocent person here. (clip via MPR and @davidjbier.bsky.social on X)

Very honored to have a chapter (on ecology and worldbuilding) in this anthology.

The cat's out of the bag!! My work is appearing in this very important incoming volume!!! It's been so hard keeping it secret for the last couple of years!!

Can we talk about it now??? It's been a highlight of my budding career to be asked to co-author a chapter with @joelmerriner.bsky.social. I'm sooo excited to read everyone's contributions, especially @mercuryreads.bsky.social ✨

I’m honoured to have a chapter in this volume on visualization, both on Tolkien’s visualizations as he composed his stories and on ways that viewers can imaginatively engage with his invented worlds through illustrations. I can’t wait to read the whole book!

Absolutely thrilled to be a part of this! Stay tuned for my chapter on the Medical Humanities 🎉

Honoured to be asked to co-write a chapter for this with the brilliant @mariebreta.bsky.social. 😄

Thrilled to have had the opportunity to write the chapter on Digital Humanities and I’m looking forward so much to reading the other chapters. @dimitrafimi.bsky.social and @lukebshelton.bsky.social were excellent editors!

I'm beyond honored to have written the chapter on Theological Criticism for what will be a phenomenal book. Mazel Tov to @lukebshelton.bsky.social, @dimitrafimi.bsky.social, and my brilliant fellow-conributors. A huge step in a mammoth undertaking!

I have a chapter about politics in this book. It was a fun excuse to catch up on the Tolkien scholarship and think about how to synthesize it all

So happy to share that @dimitrafimi.bsky.social and I have submitted this project to the publisher. I am very excited for the pieces in this volume to get into circulation because our authors worked diligently and put together some amazing chapters!

So happy to share that @dimitrafimi.bsky.social and I have submitted this project to the publisher. I am very excited for the pieces in this volume to get into circulation because our authors worked diligently and put together some amazing chapters!

Just a reminder, the greatest living American historian filmmaker, Ken Burns, released a 720 min exploration of every facet of the American revolution using zero generative AI and paying for all of its assets instead of cobbling it from stolen data, then he gave it away for free on PBS this year.

Horrific. Trump’s federal agents shot and killed another person. Republicans in control of Congress could put a stop to this chaos. Enough. Get ICE out of Minnesota, stop funding this violence, and end the assault on our communities.

Photo posted on FB of the crowd in Minneapolis today. It refreshed before I could get the name of the original poster. Proud of this city!

Taken from a book whose title I won’t mention here…for reasons 5/5

• Expose what happened. • Validate the target: show the positive aspects of whoever or whatever is attacked. • Interpret the events as unjust. • Mobilise support. Avoid or discredit official channels. • Resist intimidation and rewards. 4/5

What can be done in the face of these five methods that reduce outrage from injustice? The answer: counter each one of them. Here are the ways. 3/5

• Cover up the action. • Devalue the target. • Reinterpret what happened by lying, minimising, blaming and framing. • Use official channels to give an appearance of justice. • Intimidate or reward people involved 2/5

When a powerful group does something unjust, it can take action to reduce popular outrage. 1/5

#Westmoot26 Call for Activities is now open! Pitch your idea to coordinate a panel discussion, give a tour, live-record your podcast, host a game, and more! For details: visit our webpage and look for Call for Activities. #westmoot #intothewest @podcast.athrabeth.com @knewbettadobetta.bsky.social

When a powerful group does something unjust, it can take action to reduce popular outrage. 1/5

"I'm not in Minnesota -- what can I do to help?" A list of ideas!

So excited to see @aranelparmadil.bsky.social in person again!

Since today is #Tolkien’s birthday and the annual birthday toast is happening, here is my blog post about it from a few years ago. It talks about why I appreciate the tradition! luke-shelton.com/2019/01/03/t...

Happy Birthday, Professor! 🎂 🎉 Today marks J.R.R. Tolkien's 134. Birthday! Worldwide, Tolkienfans will rise their glasses at 21:00 to honour the man who brought us all together. 🧑‍🎨 This amazing artwork of Tolkien is by the talented Rote Ronja who sailed into the West last August, much too soon.

Happy Birthday to JRR Tolkien! To the Professor! 🍻 #TolkienBirthdayToast #art

Tomorrow is J.R.R. #Tolkien's 134th birthday! As Frodo did for Bilbo, the Tolkien Society continues to celebrate Tolkien's birthday in his absence with our #TolkienBirthdayToast. Our tradition: at 9pm your time raise a glass and toast "The Professor!" www.tolkiensociety.org/events/tolki...

Always love reading about how people first experienced Middle-earth!

You can join a worldwide organisation dedicated to #Tolkien - just in time for Christmas! Members of the Society receive 6 Amon Hen a year, our journal Mallorn, member-only events and discounts, and more! Visit www.tolkiensociety.org/join and join from anywhere in the world!

Call for papers! We are now accepting proposals for papers to be presented at #Westmoot26. Deadline is March 1, 2026. Please visit our webpage for more details. #intothewest #jrrtolkien #westmoot

🧵 There's an add running on many podcasts right now for student Google Gemini. I don't want to condescend to students, because I think many are savvy about GenAI, but please understand that "free" year they're offering means training their AI by uploading *your* work, your intellectual property.

Westmoot 2026’s theme is Hope and Eucatastrophe and we want your papers! Be sure to submit a proposal for our event in Minneapolis, May 22-24, 2026! www.tolkiensociety.org/events/westm...

Pack your pocket-handkerchiefs! Registration for #Westmoot26 is now open! Learn more & book your spot on our website. Hotel booking available soon!