Which writer founded the Inklings with C.S. Lewis at Oxford?

J.R.R. Tolkien founded the Inklings with C.S. Lewis at Oxford. The Inklings were an informal literary discussion group whose members met mainly in Oxford during the 1930s and 1940s.

Lewis and Tolkien shared a deep interest in mythology, medieval literature, and imaginative storytelling. Their conversations encouraged each other’s fiction: Tolkien was developing The Lord of the Rings, while Lewis was working toward the stories that became The Chronicles of Narnia.

The group was not a formal society with fixed membership or a founding charter. Other important participants included Charles Williams, Owen Barfield, and Lewis’s brother Warren. They commonly read drafts aloud and discussed works in progress.

The Inklings are sometimes described as a writing club, but their meetings also involved criticism, friendship, and conversation. Tolkien and Lewis were central figures, though their relationship later became less close. Tolkien’s role makes him the canonical answer when asked which major writer founded the group with Lewis.