Who edited and published many of J.R.R. Tolkien’s unfinished writings after his death?

Christopher Tolkien edited and published many of J.R.R. Tolkien’s unfinished writings after his father’s death.

Christopher Tolkien prepared The Silmarillion for publication in 1977, working from his father’s extensive papers with assistance from the writer Guy Gavriel Kay. He later edited the twelve-volume History of Middle-earth, which documents the development of Tolkien’s legends, languages, characters, and narratives.

The editorial task was unusually complex because Tolkien left multiple versions, notes, unfinished passages, and conflicting ideas. Christopher did not simply reproduce a single completed manuscript; he compared drafts and arranged material to make posthumous publications possible. He served as his father’s literary executor and continued this work for decades, making him the central figure in preserving and presenting Tolkien’s wider legendarium.