Changes

=== Writing ===

=== Writing ===

After the success of his earlier book ''[[The Hobbit]]'', Tolkien's publishers persuaded him to write a sequel. He began writing in December of 1937, but the first drafts were still far away from the finished version. After writing and re-writing the beginning several times, Tolkien realized the role of the [[One Ring (Middle-earth)|One Ring]] and the quest it entailed in the spring of 1938, while writing the discussion between Gildor Inglorion and the later [[Frodo Baggins]]. This was the point upon which the back story and central quest that would be ''The Lord of the Rings'' came together in his mind. It was also the point that he firmly set the book's plot into his already existing [[Middle-earth]] legendarium. Whereas the ''The Hobbit'' had before been separate from his Middle-earth mythology, while still borrowing ideas, names, and persons from it, Tolkien now consciously moved it and its sequel into the Middle-earth setting. This resulted in the changes in tone, and in the meaning of formerly unimportant things as the 'magic ring' and the Necromancer, who both literally gained importance in the sequel. While the ''The Hobbit'' was written as a story intended for his children, ''The Lord of the Rings'' due to the realization of the later plot, soon became an epic tale of much greater proportions, both in plot and in length.  

After the success of his earlier book ''[[The Hobbit]]'', Tolkien's publishers persuaded him to write a sequel. He began writing in December of 1937, but the first drafts were still far away from the finished version. After writing and re-writing the beginning several times, Tolkien realized the role of the [[One Ring (Middle-earth)|One Ring]] and the quest it entailed in the spring of 1938, while writing the discussion between Gildor Inglorion and the later [[Frodo Baggins]]. This was the point upon which the back story and central quest that would be ''The Lord of the Rings'' came together in his mind. It was also the point that he firmly set the book's plot into his already existing [[Middle-earth]] legendarium. Whereas the ''The Hobbit'' had before been separate from his Middle-earth mythology, while still borrowing ideas, names, and persons from it, Tolkien now consciously moved it and its sequel into the Middle-earth setting. This resulted in the changes in tone, and in the meaning of formerly unimportant things as the 'magic ring' and the Necromancer, who both gained literary importance in the sequel. While the ''The Hobbit'' was written as a story intended for his children, ''The Lord of the Rings'' due to the realization of the later plot, soon became an epic tale of much greater proportions, both in plot and in length.  

The earlier drafts and versions of ''The Lord of the Rings'' were published posthumously by his son Christopher Tolkien in ''The History of The Lord of the Rings'' (1988-1992), which are volumes VI–IX of ''The History of Middle-earth''.

The earlier drafts and versions of ''The Lord of the Rings'' were published posthumously by his son Christopher Tolkien in ''The History of The Lord of the Rings'' (1988-1992), which are volumes VI–IX of ''The History of Middle-earth''.