Which Tolkien story features the hobbit Niggle as its central character?

The Tolkien story featuring the hobbit Niggle as its central character is Leaf by Niggle.

Tolkien wrote Leaf by Niggle during the 1930s, and it was first published in the Dublin Review in 1945. The story follows Niggle, an artist who becomes absorbed in painting a vast tree while struggling with practical duties and the needs of his neighbour, Parish.

The tale is often read as a reflection on artistic creation, mortality, duty, and the relationship between a fragmentary work and the larger vision behind it. Niggle’s journey gives the story a dreamlike and morally serious structure without making it a conventional Middle-earth adventure.

Leaf by Niggle is frequently discussed alongside Tolkien’s essay On Fairy-Stories, especially the ideas of sub-creation and recovery. It is not part of The Lord of the Rings and should not be confused with Smith of Wootton Major, another standalone Tolkien fairy story.