Tolkien, Middle Earth and Backman—Oh My!

My intention with this blog is to become a better writer.  I have been reading many of my favorites in the past few years, studying their words and how they write.  I then have been reading their favorite authors to see how they have influenced them as well.  It is a wonderful way to learn about writing.

All of these stories seem to come back to the same idea...

In order to write well, one must write.  I have tried to write a story, but, get stuck at the beginning, so, I am hoping by putting my oh so random musings down in print, that I will piece together the story that is in my heart to write.  I know it's there, I am just having problems finding it.  I am pretty sure that most authors feel that way along the way as well.

Last summer I decided to read A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman.  I tend to peruse Goodreads when in need of a good book to read and one is not chomping at the bit.  I have seen Ove mentioned many times over the past few years, but, I had been busy reading other wonderful books.  I decided to give it a try.  

Backman is an author after my own heart!  He knows what he is writing about because he experiences it personally.  He is a man filled with anxiety and that translates into books that are filled with quirky characters that touch your lives, because admit it, we are all filled with anxiety these days!  He writes it so well because he lives it and that makes all of the difference in the world.  After finishing Ove, I binge read through Backman's entire collection.  I have been told that I am a Backman completist now which is quite amusing, as the term completist references obsessive interest in every aspect of something and his books weave quite a bit of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder throughout most of his books.

I will speak further about Backman's books and how they have influenced what I want to write about in a future post.  Y'all, if you have not picked up his books, you really have been missing out.

I have spent this summer re-reading. I am calling it the Summer of My Favorite Reads.  I read through all of Tolkien's Middle Earth and am working my way back through Fredrik Backman's books leading up to his new release of the Beartown trilogy this fall.  Did I mention that Backman enjoys Tolkien as well?  I just love when all of my books talk to each other in my mind.  It's a beautiful thing.  It's been a very comfort reading type of summer.  I return to Middle Earth yearly and it usually comes when I am stressed, overwhelmed and the world just doesn't make sense. THESE BOOKS, these books are my happy place 💕

If you are a fan of Tolkien or Backman, you will most likely enjoy future references to them.  If not, I am sorry, but, for you as the reader as you are missing out.