References/tributes to Tolkien in your own writing

[Thinlómien]

I was reading my creative writing final work one day and I was amused how I had almost subconsciously slipped Tolkien references there... A king says to his helper (translated rather bluntly, sorry ): "I owe you a lot. If there's anything that you want and is in my power to give to you, I will give it to you. I only insist on keeping my sword." and in the end of the tale, the death of a young woman and the fact that her body was never found is described rather Nienor-ishly... I was merely amused and I think they can be there as tributes to the writer whose texts I've read so many times I've lost count.

So, my question is, have you done something similar when writing stories or poems? Were these references conscious or subconscious ones?

(If you're not too shy, actual quotes would be lovely. )

PS. If a thread like this exists despite all my searches, please point that out. There's also a separate thread where you can share your experiences of making Tolkien references in non-fictional (school) works...

[Legate of Amon Lanc]

I think I am doing this all the time. In fact, my writing style is very often showing references to other authors. It is partially intentional and partially not. I am sure I am writing akin to somebody even without realising.

I am not sure if I could quote an example, basically it's really just everywhere. But perhaps just one which I can quote rightaway - it's a rather specific example, and it was intentional that time; one short story of mine about a necromancer and his apprentices; at one point the apprentices were talking and one of them said to the others: "You'd better go and study now, if you don't want to end like conjurers of cheap tricks."

[Eomer of the Rohirrim]

Eh, well, I wrote some stuff last year that I thought was my own style mixed with a sizeable helping of Saga-style. Cailín read it and immediately said: "Silmarillion." I think mostly because it was a quite impersonal summary of a creation myth.

So I suppose I need to try harder.

[Elmo]

I use a lot of Tolkienesqe words like fair, dwelt, keen, deem, unconsciously in my writing. Makes it sound very archaic though sometimes.

[TheGreatElvenWarrior]

Originally Posted by Elmo

I use a lot of Tolkienesqe words like fair, dwelt, keen, deem, unconsciously in my writing. Makes it sound very archaic though sometimes.

I'm in the same boat as you, Elmo. I've started to write with Tolkienesque sounding words. Well, that is when I write...

[Ibrîniðilpathânezel]

I know that when I made my first forays into fiction writing in the latter years of elementary school, whatever I wrote was seriously influenced by whatever author I happened to be currently reading and enjoying. I had a Tolkien phase, and a McCaffrey phase, and a Hawthorne phase, and a T.H. White phase, and lord only knows how many others. By the time I reached my latter years of high school, I started to become aware of this, so that when I started work on the more ambitious works I wanted to submit for professional publication, I had to consciously guard against inadvertent imitation. Meant a lot of editing and rewriting. I'm sure my original fiction has traces of all the authors who have most profoundly influenced me, but I haven't been accused of sounding like anyone but myself for decades -- unless I did it deliberately. Perhaps it's a kind of mellowing that comes with age.

[LadyBrooke]

While I can't give specific sentences my writing style as a whole is rather Tolkienesque unless I try to change it. My writing style is, according to my teachers, much more mature than the average teenager's. Since these comments only started coming after reading LotR. (I need a *shrug* smilie)

[Hakon]

I tend to write various events that are similar to Tolkien. I mean in my story there is a guy who gets defeated in a way similar to Fingolfin beating Melkor. My overall writing style is similar to Tolkien's writing style. Sadly my teachers hate it, they always complain it connects to much with the reader.

[LadyBrooke]

Hakon, what do they mean it connects to much with the reader? Are readers not supposed to enjoy the story anymore and just sit around and do literary analysis on it all day? That seems strange to me because all my teacher stress that works should have emotional depth and allow the reader to feel the story.

[Hakon]

Well an example is with Tolkien, how he will sometimes kind of go off the regular narration and throw in more information. He did it quite a bit in the Hobbit. I always feel that when that happens it connects more with the reader because it is less like a formal narration. My teachers seem to think that doing that ruins any kind of written work.

[LadyBrooke]

That seems strange to me. Surely teachers at the very least should be aware that many of the greatest works of literature have come about after somebody broke all of the 'rules' of writing? LotR itself is a good example of this. Looking at what should be popular according to the 'rules' LotR should be one of the least popular but it's not.

I have been very fortunate to have teachers who have encouraged experimentation in my writing. Which is suprising when you consider that I've had 4 English teachers in 4 years.

[Hakon]

That is lucky. I have not had a good English teacher since 2006.

[Laurinquë]

I have recently enrolled in an eight-day creative writing class at my school. The focus is nature and travel writing yet somehow it always turns into something very Tolkienesqe for me. This probably has a good deal to do with my own inexperience with creative writing (I haven't done it since I was in the forth grade) so I have not developed my own style in anyway. So far I have found it very enjoyable, which surprises me greatly, and I would like to continue with it - even if I am quite lousy at it. Particularly with the punctuation aspect of it, I will never understand it's complexities.

HERE you can find one of first pieces. I did it mostly for own amusement and was a terrible copier of both Tolkien and the Barrow-Downs. Please do not think too poorly of me, I had fun.

And HERE is my later work. It has an Ent in it I fear. It is much more like my usual work and is less of a ripping-off-of. Still a bit bad though . . .

[TheGreatElvenWarrior]

Originally Posted by Laurinquë

I have recently enrolled in an eight-day creative writing class at my school. The focus is nature and travel writing yet somehow it always turns into something very Tolkienesqe for me. This probably has a good deal to do with my own inexperience with creative writing (I haven't done it since I was in the forth grade) so I have not developed my own style in anyway. So far I have found it very enjoyable, which surprises me greatly, and I would like to continue with it - even if I am quite lousy at it. Particularly with the punctuation aspect of it, I will never understand it's complexities.

HERE you can find one of first pieces. I did it mostly for own amusement and was a terrible copier of both Tolkien and the Barrow-Downs. Please do not think too poorly of me, I had fun.

And HERE is my later work. It has an Ent in it I fear. It is much more like my usual work and is less of a ripping-off-of. Still a bit bad though . . .

I wrote about Ents as well, just not so blatantly that it was noticed by our English teacher. I also inserted the word 'Arda'.

[Laurinquë]

Originally Posted by TheGreatElvenWarrior

I wrote about Ents as well, just not so blatantly that it was noticed by our English teacher. I also inserted the word 'Arda'.

Balrogs may or may not have featured in my work today. I could not help myself, really. They are so much better than tigers!

[TheGreatElvenWarrior]

Originally Posted by Laurinquë

Balrogs may or may not have featured in my work today. I could not help myself, really. They are so much better than tigers!

They did! I remember, I proofread it!