C.S. Lewis used the name The Inklings for the Oxford literary group that included J.R.R. Tolkien.
The Inklings met mainly in Oxford during the 1930s and 1940s. Members read works in progress aloud, discussed literature, and offered criticism. Lewis and Tolkien were among the best-known participants, but the group also included writers such as Charles Williams and Owen Barfield.
The name was informal rather than the title of a formal society with a fixed membership list. Meetings took place in places including Lewis’s rooms at Magdalen College and the Eagle and Child pub, which members called the Bird and Baby.
The group is often described as a writing club, but its discussions included theology, mythology, language, and philosophy. Its influence is especially associated with the development and testing of major works by Lewis and Tolkien.