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nice posts here. I dont think they were wasted years. Consider TH and LOTR as the original, organic works that they were. And consider the author at the time when the works were written. The whole premise of the idea of ME is the recounting of a history that has already been written, as it were. Publication has its impact. Who knew that TH was going to run away with sales? While not a professional author per say, I would say that wrapped up in the ideas discussed here was some sense of responsibility to the published works and also to those who purchased the material.
The bigger question to me is: What would the legendarium be like if there was NO Hobbit and LOTR....? Or, what would the history be like if only the FINISHED Silm ONLY was put out for publication, say in the mid 1960's, only to find weak or mediocre sales? What then would Christopher find after his father died?
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