Bandersnatch

In my most recent IWSG post I shared that I wish I was a part of a group like The Inklings. Several reached out to me to find out who that was, or where they might learn more. I am currently reading Bandersnatch and recommend it to anyone interested in C.S. Lewis, his brother, J.R.R. Tolkien, or any of the other members of their writing circle.

The Inklings met each week to read and discuss each other's work-in-progress, offering both encouragement and blistering critique. How did these conversations shape the books they were writing? How does creative collaboration enhance individual talent? And what can we learn from their example?

Featuring full-page illustrations by James A. Owen, Bandersnatch offers an inside look at this group of Oxford, and a seat at their table at the Eagle and Child pub. It shows how encouragement and criticism made all the difference in The Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, and dozens of other books written by the members of their band. You'll learn what made these writers tick, and more: inspired by their example, you'll discover how collaboration can help your own creative process and lead to genius breakthroughs in whatever work you do.

This book is written by Diana Pavlac Glyer, an award-winning writer, who has spent more than 40 years combing through archives and studying old manuscripts. She is a leading expert on C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and the Inklings. Her book The Company They Keep changed the way we talk about these writers. While that book was aimed at readers of those authors, Bandersnatch offers current writers insight about the Inklings and their creative process, telling their story in a way that is accessible and very practical. Her scholarship, her teaching, and her work as an artist all circle back to one common theme: creativity thrives in community.

How about you? Have you read this book? Are you a fan of any of these authors?