You could call it a magical portal to another world, and you wouldn’t be far wrong. DarkCrystal.Com has just opened to the world. It’s a place for fans to connect, share and expand the world of Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal. The site is founded by Cheryl Henson, the President of the Jim Henson Foundation and a member of the Board of Directors for The Jim Henson Company, as well as the company’s director for New York-based operations. She is the second child of Jim and Jane Henson.

Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal is a 1982 American-British fantasy film directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz. It tells the story of Jen, an elflike ‘Gelfling’ on a quest to restore balance to his alien world by returning a lost shard to a powerful but broken gem. Though a family film, it was darker than Henson’s earlier works. The puppetry used in the film was considered groundbreaking, and the world was introduced to the singularly and deeply striking designs of Brian & Wendy Froud, famous for their distinctive faerie and dwarf designs.

There is a lot to see and do at DarkCrystal.com. There are forums, galleries, and From October 1st, 2013 to December 31st, 2013, The Jim Henson Company and Grosset & Dunlap of the Penguin Young Readers Group will be accepting writing submissions to find the author for a new novel set in the world of Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal. This author search is open to all professional and aspiring professional writers. The rules are as much about how to write a decent novel as they are about the contest itself, and you can read them on their site. Just in case, here are some handy links:

The Gelfling Gathering – Author’s Resource

Author Quest Rules & Regulations

Author Quest FAQ

Not a writer? That’s actually okay too. The Dark Crystal site is meant as a library of knowledge for all fans, and the creation of fan fiction, fan films and even a meme generator. And if that’s not enough, you can play the original Dark Crystal text adventure computer game right there on the site.

There’s been a huge vacuum in the fandom community and Dark Crystal is one of the best loved fantasy films of all time, and now instead of an empty space, there’s a warm glow. To Cheryl Henson: well done, and thank you.

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