The Abridged Guide to Girls in Middle Earth

by Wingtip

So you want to go with the tried and true GiME story? Or maybe you want to deconstruct it. This guide will help you avoid the pitfalls that come with dropping a modern girl into Middle Earth.

Disclaimer: I do not own LotR

The Abridged Guide to Girls in Middle Earth

If you have read or watched the Lord of the Rings, you have imagined what it would be like to be in that world. Don't deny it, don't argue or fight about it, just take a deep breath, be honest with yourself, and accept it.

I remember being ten or eleven, and watching the trilogy with my friends for the first time, and running home to write all about how me and my closest friend found ourselves with the fellowship in Middle Earth and went of epic adventures and I fell in love with Legolas and became an elf. Perhaps your fantasy was a little different from mine, but I'm guessing the basics are there.

What I'm trying to say is this; we are all writers of the dreaded girl-in-Middle-Earth story, whether we admit it or not. I'm going to wager a guess, however, that many of us have kept these tales locked away, buried deep within the files of our computers, whipped out only during bouts of nostalgia or when you want to prove to yourself that, whatever else, you've improved. Most of us grow ashamed of these silly fantasies and like to pretend they never happened.

Now, I'm going to say something rather bitchy; it's probably for the best we never speak of these fics to anyone.

Writing good fiction is hard. Writing good fiction based on a ridiculous premise, more so. And to admit that we ever ventured into this, even at a young and naïve age, would make us seem lesser authors to some of our peers. There's something of a bias against these types of stories among the older and more educated (I use that term in the literal sense, as in have been in school more) writers on this site. Younger authors get away with it in their circles, but for those of us who have been on the site for a few years, and have scrolled by seemingly a million from our world in Middle Earth stories, we tend to be a bit jaded and cynical, and not without good reason; most fics of this nature are self-inserts and poorly done ones at that.

There is another sort of counter-culture to the Girl in Middle Earth fic; the attempted deconstructions. In these, the author tries to play this trope realistically and make a good fic of it. People tend to flock to these stories and praise them based on the premise alone- oh, the author is mocking and improving the story I hate so much! But truth be told, I've grown quite tired of these too; the writer rarely grasps what made the trope so annoying and while they avoid some pitfalls, the resulting character is often the cynical-anti-Sue, which I find more annoying than any classic-Sue out there.

This whole introduction is not to say that I don't believe this genre can be done well; quite the contrary. I believe there are some hidden gems in the murky depths of this sub-genre and would love to see more; when done right, these fics are brilliant looks into culture and character that manage to truly grasp Tolkien's world and bring it to life. And hopefully, this guide will help make it easier to write a Girl in Middle Earth fic that encompasses all the good parts of the genre.

Being Unique

There was once a time when simply having a well-developed character was enough to make your deconstruction fic stand out; but alas, as more and more people do this, just having a good OFC isn't enough, though it is necessary.

Now, some people may see the header and get the wrong idea; that they should make the character extra-special. This is misguided. The key is to make the story unique, rather than the character.

Perhaps, instead of the character ending up in Rivendell, they end up with a group of dwarves? Maybe have a middle-aged mother and her bratty child show up in Gondor? Personally, I'm still holding out for that story about a barbershop quartet to end up in Mordor and reform Sauron with the power of their sweet harmonies, but that doesn't seem like it's going to happen anytime soon (but if someone were to write this, I would be eternally grateful).

Don't do anything that would make them a Mary Sue, but try to do something unique with the premise, to grab people's interest and make your story stand out.

Who's Falling?

Perhaps he most annoying thing about Girl in Middle Earth stories is the girl herself. Now, I already wrote a more extensive guide on creating OFCs, so I'm not going to delve into details on that here. What I will talk about is dynamics.

Since we live in an age where plenty a well-developed character has been dropped down in Middle Earth, some authors try to make their work unique by sending in a duo or group of relatives, friends, or otherwise connected individuals. These can either deepen the characters and give them a nice richness, or, as the case more often is, ruin a story.

Too Many Cooks Spoil the Stew

since the premise you're writing for already catapults your characters into danger-zone, yo need to keep a tight leash on them. And like any dog-walker can tell you, the more you have, the most you lose track of things. There's no real numeric limit to how many characters I think you can drop in; just so long as they are each a good character and interesting to read about. But if you have trouble with Sues, or aren't very good with ensemble scenes (I myself suffer from this, so I know where you're coming from), keep the number way low.

Self Inserts

Warning: unpopular opinion coming up.

I don't automatically hate self-inserts. Like I said in the preface, they're the base of this sub-genre and for that, I think we can respect them. In fact, self-inserts may be hidden mines of golden potential; who do we know better than ourselves? And since the character would be an actual person, they should have real flaws.

The above, however, is rarely the case. I put that statement in bold because I have seen one good self-insert in my life, and it was a parody. Self inserts are usually more like self-avatars; we create them based on us, but we gloss over our flaws and alter them into who we want to be and not who we are. In my opinion, good writing expresses some sort of truth about life; that's a pretty vague statement, I'll admit, but it means that these shadow-selves made of our broken dreams are awful characters.

Another annoying self-insert trope is when the author and her best friends fall into middle earth. These stories are riddles with whatever traits their friends find 'cool', none of the characters make mistakes or have flaws that would hurt the friend's feelings, and are chock full of unfunny inside jokes that no one but maybe ten people get. Also, they're usually written by a twelve-year-old. If you want to write a story that only you and your friends will enjoy, Email it to them or print it out. Don't put it online and expect readers to praise it, and you certainly should not complain about criticisms left on it.

The bottom line with self-insert fics is that while, in a perfect world they would be insightful and funny, in the real world, they kind of suck. Kind of like self-inserts themselves.

Siblings (sisters, as I have rarely seen brothers or a mixed-gender-duo in ME)

I have an older sister, and so I'm a bit intrigued by the sister-genre that I've seen crop up a few times. Sibling dynamics are pretty fascinating; you have this person who knows more about you than pretty much anyone but your mom, and who you may love or hate, or sometimes both. Imagine that dynamic when they are tossed into an unfamiliar situation, alone, with only each-other to rely on?

But more often than not, making characters sisters has less to do with exploring themes of family and trust, and more to do with having an excuse to have similar-looking girls in the same place at the same time. To top this off, any look into the sisters relationship is sidelined for the sake of cheesy romance. In one story I read, two sisters who had been separated for years in Middle Earth found each-other, and you know what they did? Hugged for about three lines, asked two questions each, and then chose to go hang out with other people just because they were love interests. Look, I'm bickering with my sister for most of the time we see each other, but if I were in that situation, you couldn't get me to leave her side, even for a sexy elf boy.

My advice is this; if you don't have siblings, don't write about them. There are a lot of weird things that siblings go through; phases, emotions, conflicts, and more, and it's a complicated relationship for people who are in it to capture.

Friends

No, friends tend to fall into the self-insert category, but say you manage to not go that route, here are some points to consider.

*Friends fight. They are not the same person, and often have differing opinions and clashes.

*Friends may not share the same background, but they do tend to have some hobbies in common.

*Some friends are forever, others are not. It would be more interesting to read about how Middle Earth tested a friendship than how it helped it.

*Don't sideline the friend's relationship with each other for the sake of romance. If you want us to care about them as individuals, and you introduce them as good friends, you should want us to care about that friendship and how it affects them.

How Did we Get Here? Deus Ex Machina? What's That?

There are many ways one can arrive in Middle Earth, So we're going into sub-sub-category here. Each underlined method has an 'acceptability rank', for how much I tell you use it. 1 is no, no, not ever, and 10 being eh. So long as it's done well. Keep in mind the ranking is not necessarily addressed to how well you used this trope, just what I've seen of it in general.

The Valar/Eru

Sometimes, a girl needs to be brought to Middle Earth by a divine being. Here are some excuses given for why.

The Prophesied Child. Rank: -4

In these fics, we're supposed to believe that, for some reason, it was absolutely necessary that this one teenaged girl wind up in Middle Earth, fall in love, and save the world. But there are many reasons as to why this doesn't work.

First of all, what is this girl meant to do? The threat in the third age in Sauron, and that problem was solved just fine without Seraphina Phoenix-Feather there to race around and kiss elves. Since the character is not needed to save the world why would divine beings go out of their way to get her to Middle Earth?

Also, why is this particular girl so special? What skill does she have that no one else on earth does? I suppose you could give her one, but that is almost guaranteed to make her a Sue, and most authors don't even try to go this route. Usually, she just has a special birthday or lineage, to which I say, LAZY.

Finally, why is it so important she fall in love with Legolas? No, but really though, why does that matter? What, is the power of love going to bring Sauron to his knees? Yeah, didn't think so.

P.S., this way is kind of a guaranteed Mary Sue.

The Child of a Maia/One of the Valar Rank: 2

So I'm guessing a few of you are confused as to why this isn't also a -4. I'll admit, it is an awful, usually non-canon method, but. But. This is one of those tropes that, in the hands of an excellent writer, would be a good source of conflict, tension, and intrigue.

Now, never make them the child of a Valar, as that is strictly non-canon. But if you think you have the talent to write a really good character, I say you can try to make a child-of-a-Maia OC. But they'd better be damned good characters in a damned good story.

Stumbling into Middle Earth

The most common of the tropes used. It seems that our world is actually a mess of potholes and portals into Middle Earth, and we just haven't been looking hard enough.

The TV/Book Entrance. Rank: 1

If we could just jump into a TV screen and wind up in our favorite worlds, there would be more business in television repairs.

This methods major flaw is that it calls to mind the most cheesy mental image, and makes no sense whatsoever. How did the book serve as a portal? Why is this only now happening? What about this book makes it special? It's such a silly method and really a cheap device to use. I have tried to take fics like this seriously, but I just can't. They just mark your work as amateurish.

Taking a Walk/Drive into Mordor...Rank: 6

Ignoring the fact that I find it hard to sympathize with someone so oblivious they wouldn't notice they had waltzed into another world, This is actually a nice way to veil the circumstances of her appearance in mystery and give the fic an almost eery air to it. When done well, this method gives your story some good atmosphere and tension.

So why only a six?

Like I said before, it's hard to make me believe and yet still be interested by the type of girl who just stumbles into another world without noticing. She either seems oblivious and careless, or the writing feels forced.

Secondly, people feel the need to add in stone arches for them to walk through to get there, or winding pathways, and quite frankly, structure kind of eliminates some of the mythical feeling these scenes can have, and bring up questions. Who built the arch? How did they end up here? And their story opens to many questions that most authors can't deliver on.

Falling Through a Manhole, into Middle Earth's Sky Rank: 1

No.

that's really all I can say.

If you fell from our world into Middle Earth (and this calls to mind the ridiculous image of ME being inside our earth), you would die. It would be horrific and painful and unpleasant.

Was Always from Middle Earth Rank: 3

The problem with these is that the character is almost always a Sue, sent away for special purposes or for her protection, and it doesn't make any sense. There is almost never any explanation as to how she got there or why no one else ever did, or if it is explained, it's in a cheesy, cliched way.

Half and Half

This is when a character only spends some time in ME, and the rest she's back on earth. Sometimes this is a really nice source of conflict and a really good way to delve more into cultures and history, but that's rarely the case.

Dreams of Another Life Rank: 4

This is when a character, in their dreams, travels to Middle Earth.

I occasionally like this trope because of how well a certain author has portrayed the internal conflict; is it just a dream? It feels real, but is it? Should I stay asleep? Is my obsession with this dream taking over my life? These are all questions that nicely fuel a characters struggles and conflicts without having to make huge dramatic things happen every chapter in-story.

It's when the dilemma is ignored that authors find themselves in trouble with this. The fact that Middle Earth is technically a dream needs to be addresses.

Skipping Between the Worlds Rank: 6

Honesty time; one story alone on this site proved to me that this kind of fic can be pulled off well, and got it a six. Since I titled this section Skipping, I'm sure most of you can figure out which one.

The reason that fic, and others like it (if they exist), work well, is twofold; for one, we are given insight as to why she skips as she does. Secondly; being torn between two world affects her life and actions in both worlds. Her Earth life is down the drain and often times, so is her life in Middle Earth.

If a reason is not given, however, and the moving-between-worlds has no affect on the character, then this fic is automatically, in my mind at least, poor.

Death (5)

The only topic without a subcategory, as it's simple to sum my thoughts up on this: it makes no sense. Why would dying bring one specific person to Middle Earth? Does everyone die when they go there? Why just her?

So why still a five?

Because this is one of the few tropes I have read, where the writers, with some regularity, touch on the subject of mortality, and depth of thought can be nice sometimes.

But when themes of death and rebirth and all that are ignored, then the story will be, as well.

Where she Ends up, Who she Meets

The characters entrance into ME is often the stories make-or-break moment. If you character is the umpteenth teen to land just outside of Rivendell, I'm likely to click away. Having your Sue wash up near the closest hot elf is a sign that you're taking the easy way, and that way is not fun to read about.

Try to make her land in someplace unique; imagine, the minute you step into a new world, you have to fight off a giant spider with no weapons. Or how about landing yourself right into Sauron's clutches? Maybe even have them find themselves in Valinor or Bree or Dale or Erebor, or anywhere but Rivendell or Hobbiton. Have them meet Easterners before Westerners and learn to sympathize with the enemy. Have them meet a group of traveling dwarves and turn it into a Snow White parody. Just do something new and unique!

The Language Barrier

Tolkien created several languages and parts of languages for his world; I've even read that the reason he created Middle Earth was s he could have a place for his languages to exist.

So why does anyone think English exists in this language rich world?

You can act like Westron is similar to Old English, I guess, but let's be honest, how many of us understand Shakespearean diction perfectly with no effort, let alone a changed version of it?

You Need to address the fact that the character from Earth would not be able to easily understand anyone in Middle Earth. They would have to slowly learn the language, and you have to take into account dialect, slang, and colloquialisms.

Hygiene, Hair, and Health

One thing that bothers me in Girl-in-Middle-Earth fics is that this topic is ignored. To draw attention to it, I have made a list of things they do not have in Middle Earth you should consider:

Running water

Flushing toilets

Toilet Paper

Toothbrushes

Modern toothpaste

Tampons

Pads

Showers

Deodorant

Machines to wash your clothing

Razors for your legs, pits, and nether regions

Acne creme

underpants

Now, if I were in a place without these things, I know working around my modern sensibilities would be a big part of my daily life. So they'd better be part of your characters, as well, because we all know we're nothing without our TP.

Another thing to consider is that many diseases exist in Middle Earth but not here; also, medical procedures and cures were no where near our own. Also, Middle Earth is dirty, a festering ground for bacteria.

Now, you don't need to give your character TB within a week of being there, but it's something you should keep in mind to add realism to the story; disease is a very real, very scary thing, because it's not something you can physically fight off. Exploring it in the fic would really bring out the fish-out-of-water vibe in a majorly dramatic way.

Also, if your character looks unnatural (died hair, piercings, etc.), it must be addressed in the story.

Relationships with Canon Characters

I think the problem that most girl-in-Middle-Earth stories encounter when it comes to the OC interacting with the CCs (other than OOC and other things addressed in other guides) is that they ignore the fact that the OC already has a relationship with them as characters, and now needs to build a new one with them as people.

I mean think about your favorite character; you have memories of reading about them, ideas about their character, and a unique insight into their mind. They may have even had a profound influence on your life in a way they never knew. But no, you meet them. You have to see them as a person, with flaws and bad traits, who makes mistakes.

This is, in my humble opinion, a really interesting relationship that is more often than not, ignored.

Also, there needs to be a reason for characters to believe yours. I mean, would you believe it if someone you just met told you your name and who you were and then said they were from the future? Probably not. You need to build a relationship between characters that allows us to believe that they would believe your character. And no, simply telling them everything about themselves is not good enough.

As for romance, I wrote a guide on that as well. Personally, I'm fine with romance so long as you don't make it the point of the whole story. Girl-in-Middle-Earth fics work best when they're character or culture or story pieces first, and romances second.

Affect of the Story

Now, a big question is how much, if anything, needs to be changed.

Many authors chose the safe route and make their character a simple observer in actions they cannot change, but if you're feeling adventurous, you can try other things out. Maybe have them try to save people but ultimately fail, or have them do something to stop one bad thing that causes a million other awful things to happen.

The key is this; every thing they change must have a consequence. They can't save Boromir and then have nothing bad happen as a result. His death had a profound affect on the story; embittering Denethor further, making sure the Hobbits were taken to Isenguard, the three hunters going to Rohan... these all should be addressed.

To Leave or Not to Leave

This is the ultimate end question. Lets examine the pros and cons of both options.

Staying: the pros of this are many; you get to play with emotions and themes of home and belonging, and you get to wrap up every hanging thread. It also adds to the realism of you story.

On the other hand, this may seem like an easy-way-out. It can just be an easy ay to give your character a happy ending, especially if their earth-life sucks.

Returning: With this type of fic, you get to really play up angst and themes of regret and memories. It also may make your fic seem more deep and have more gravity.

But you may have to leave plot threads hanging, and you'll have to work this out with how she got there.

At the end of the day, it's up to you, just do what's best for the story and character.

The Final Bit

If you chose to venture into this genre, I wish you well, but beware; it's a fine line that separates the good from the bad, and you are likely to trip.