Karim Sabbagh
Neil GaimanA world without Tolkien would be very grey. In my episode of Talking Shop, from MasterClass Original Series, I talk about my love for Tolkien, and what I learned from him about creative writing, facing the impossible and creating fantasy worlds.
AJ Butterwick@neilhimself Not going to lie, as much as I like the Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, I'm glad you didn't learn to make 15 pages of travelogue between scenes or have a guy sing his whole national anthem with three huge arrows in his chest.
Again -- I like Tolkien's writing and the whole idea of being a linguist, making languages and then making myths and legends to go with those languages.
It's a lot of description of walking through nature is all I'm saying.
Dusty Beo
Phillip Hallam-Baker@neilhimself The world of fantasy fiction would likely have developed very differently. Tolkien was really the first to go to the obsessive lengths he did in world building.
People would probably have made up languages etc, but to ground them in a deep knowledge of old English, etc. etc...
@neilhimself Just to mention it: Lord of the Rings is also the authors way to cope with his experiences of WorldWar I. The armies butchering each other, the first use of Tanks, the first Airstrikes, the first biological and chemical weapons, the trenches.. and the wish to know exactly the good and the bad guys in this conflict were .. with these parallels in mind, its a whole different story!
Calm, considering@neilhimself
One of the happiest moments of being a parent has been reading The Hobbit to my eldest when she was eight.
I need to get her to read the Lord of the Rings once she gets Harry Potter out of her system
One of the happiest moments of being a parent has been reading The Hobbit to my eldest when she was eight.
I need to get her to read the Lord of the Rings once she gets Harry Potter out of her system
Terence@calmconsidering @neilhimself I was in third grade when my father read the full ring trilogy aloud to me. Just reread for the n+1th time at 57 years old. Still amazing.
lfrobertson@neilhimself
I just finished rereading Lord of the Rings and realized that it was more or less the opposite of the heroic epic. The conventional heroes, the kings and great men, are supporting characters. The book’s heroes, Sam and Frodo, are ordinary folk called upon to save the world and endure great suffering, and after they’ve finished they return to their regular lives, and one of them, at least, is permanently scarred by their experiences.
I just finished rereading Lord of the Rings and realized that it was more or less the opposite of the heroic epic. The conventional heroes, the kings and great men, are supporting characters. The book’s heroes, Sam and Frodo, are ordinary folk called upon to save the world and endure great suffering, and after they’ve finished they return to their regular lives, and one of them, at least, is permanently scarred by their experiences.
Luke Kanies@neilhimself I wholeheartedly agree — halfway through rewatching The Two Towers and purchased the trilogy this holiday in hopes my kids will finally read it, because my dad reading it to me affected me so much.
But wow, Brin’s commentary on Tolkien changed my perspective so much I flipped from full fantasy to mostly sci-fi (your writing being a notable exception then, and Jemisin one now).
It’s a crucial, and brilliant, legacy, but one hard to grapple with.
Keiþ 🔭@neilhimself And there would be no names for companies selling hill walking equipment.
Alex 🦉 Zone Blanche@neilhimself I totally agree with you. I don't want to imagine a univers where Tolkien's work doesn't exist. Moreover I live where his illustrator John Howe studied art and were inspired by castles and landscapes to draw Middle Earth. This is a huge inspiration when I'm taking photos, I try to recreate a Tolkien vibe and I feel "complete" and satisfied whenever I succeed.
We are so lucky to live in a time where we can read his work 
woodlandcreature@neilhimself We wouldn’t have so many great songs by Led Zeppelin, either! He inspired so many.
I AM BANKSY ☕ / 🗑🔥@neilhimself Sure, if you were to visit it from this world. I would expect that that would would have something to fill that void, that they would think our world gray in its absence.
April👨🏫 "I wanted to be the person
who'd written The Lord of the Rings,
I carried around a copy
in case I went time-traveling
into another dimension
where Tolkien wasn't a thing—
but instead it yagi'd Bragi
who made new Tolkien of me!"
Vincent Waciuk@neilhimself I just watched your Talking Shop episode. Wow. Just wow.
@waciuk thank you!
tiarala@neilhimself The exhibition of Tolkien's notes and archives is ending at Marquette in Milwaukee in the next few days. It is extraordinary. If you can't make it there, I highly recommend picking up a copy of the exhibition book from the Haggerty museum. A masterclass in worldbuilding.
Marty Vance@neilhimself Something I recently realized Tolkien doesn't get much credit for is all the mythology he deconstructed before building Middle-Earth from the pieces.
I think that is an important step for anyone building secondary worlds.
Elizabeth McFadden@neilhimself Tolkien was my door into fantasy (as he was for many). I was 8 years old when I stumbled across him, and my world was never the same.
Dehghan Saiee@neilhimself Trailer looks cool. Would be a fun one to sit through if I ever join Masterclass.