Which 1967 story by J.R.R. Tolkien was published as a standalone work about a royal smith?

J.R.R. Tolkien’s 1967 standalone story about a royal smith is Smith of Wootton Major.

The story follows Smith, a village craftsman who receives a magical star from a great cake and gains entry to the perilous realm of Faërie. There he encounters wonders, dangers, and a king whose world is connected to the ordinary village in unexpected ways.

Smith of Wootton Major was published by George Allen & Unwin in November 1967. Tolkien wrote it after abandoning an earlier attempt to create a longer sequel or companion to The Hobbit. The finished tale is short, but it explores themes familiar from Tolkien’s other work, including imagination, mortality, duty, and the relationship between the ordinary and the marvelous.

It is often confused with Farmer Giles of Ham, another short Tolkien work. Farmer Giles of Ham appeared earlier, in 1949, and concerns a reluctant hero, a dragon, and a medieval English setting.