The literary society C.S. Lewis helped establish at Oxford in 1933 was called the Inklings.
The Inklings were an informal discussion group associated with Oxford University. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien were its best-known members, and the group included writers and scholars such as Charles Williams, Owen Barfield, and Warren Lewis. Members read drafts aloud, discussed literature, and exchanged criticism rather than following a formal constitution or membership system.
The group took shape in the early 1930s and became especially active during the following decades. Meetings were held in Oxford rooms and local pubs, including The Eagle and Child. Lewis’s brother Warren was also closely involved and later wrote about the group’s activities.
The Inklings were not a publishing house, political organization, or official university society. Their importance comes from the creative exchange among writers whose work included fantasy, mythology, literary criticism, and Christian thought. Tolkien read portions of The Lord of the Rings to Lewis, while Lewis shared work connected with his own fiction and apologetics.