Did Tolkien read, or was he influenced by, H.P. Lovecraft?

Tolkien DID read Robert E. Howard, who was a close friend of Lovecraft's and the two often shared and discussed ideas. "Lovecraftian" creatures appeared in Howard's work, and Tolkien might have been exposed to them that way. read more

While it seems unlikely to many (or most if not all) Tolkien scholars that J.R.R. Tolkien was directly influenced by H.P. Lovecraft, both writers acknowledged influences from common sources. In fact, many of their shared or similar themes extend back through all European mythology and even to the Epic of Gilgamesh. read more

Considering he wrote down so little of what he read and was influenced by general, we'll never really know. read more