How Tolkien Influences My Writing

gandalf-and-bearThis article is by Terri Rochenski.

My love affair with the fantasy genre started at an early age when someone bought me and my older brother The Chronicles of Narnia seven book gift set. I read them ‘til they fell apart.

Literally.

I can’t tell you how many times I checked the backs of every closet in our large farm house, totally expecting to find Mr. Tumnus. Oh, the disappointment of finding fantasy is just that—fantasy. Make Believe.

I was introduced to The Hobbit in middle school. The first time I watched the original cartoon released in 1977, I was hooked. I gobbled up the LotR series within the following month. While I may not have understood the underlying moral lessons at that age, re-reads through the years cemented Middle Earth as my favorite daydream land.

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Entertainment: The Eradication of Effort?

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The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
The Lord of the Rings film trilogy

A few weeks ago I went camping for a night with five of my mates.  While there, they called over a trio of girls who were setting up tent in the plot next to ours.  The entire time the girls were there I sat on my lonesome prodding the fire and only vaguely listening in on the conversation.  It was mostly uninteresting. “What’s your favourite TV show?” or “What type of music are you in to?” or, sadly, “What foods do you like?”

Eventually, the topic of books was somehow brought up in the random array of subjects, although the only things I heard were derogatory to the art of reading and writing.  “I don’t read,” or “I’ll never read a book,” or “Why would I read a book when I can watch a movie?”  It disheartened me, and it made me understand how isolated I am in the 21st century as a literature enthusiast.

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