J.R.R. Tolkien and manuscripts is an often overlooked topic, but it is also a multiheaded beast. Not only does it cover how Tolkien the medievalist worked with manuscripts, but also how his professional experience filtered into his creative work. Either through direct access, photographs, facsimile editions, or film surrogates, Tolkien would have built up considerable knowledge of medieval manuscripts - how they were constructed, how they were disseminated and collected, and how they appeared and felt. Public interest and exposure to Tolkien’s manuscripts was increased in a series of major exhibitions from 2018 to 2020. On display were samples of his lectures, notes, talks, letters, illustrations, and fiction - handwritten or typed. This chapter presents a brief study of the manuscripts surrounding “Shelob’s Lair, " which serves as a good example of some of the issues one can encounter but is also illustrative of Tolkien’s creative writing process.
