[Of C.S. Lewis's comments on The Lord of the Rings]
When he would say "You can do better than that. Better, Tolkien, please!" I would try. I'd sit down and write the section over and over. That happened with the scene I think is the best in the book, the confrontation between Gandalf and his rival wizard, Saruman, in the ravaged city of Isengard.
I do not think the Saruman passage is the best in the book. It is much better than the first draft, that is all. I mentioned the passage becase it is in fact one of the very few places where in the event I found [Lewis's] detailed criticisms useful and just. I cut out some passages of light-hearted hobbit conservation which he found tiresome, thinking that if he did most of the readers (if any) would feel the same. I do not think the event has proved him right. To tell the truth he never really liked hobbits very much, least of all Merry and Pippin. But a great number of readers do, and would like more than they have got.
(From the Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien, Letter No. 294, 1967)
Important stuff here:
1. Get feedback and take it seriously. Keep on writing, but keep on getting feedback too.
2. Know when to ignore the feedback you get.
I know this is basic stuff, but it's good to hear it from a writer of Tolkien's caliber.
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