Letter 107a

The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien
Letter 107a
Recipient	Stanley Unwin
Date	5 May 1947
Subject(s)	Farmer Giles of Ham, The Lord of the Rings

Letter 107a is a letter written by J.R.R. Tolkien and published in The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien: Revised and Expanded edition.

Background

Allen & Unwin had decided to publish Farmer Giles of Ham as a separate volume, and Stanley Unwin had written with the contractual offer. Despite the high cost of having it illustrated, including two pieces in colour, Unwin thought it would sell on its merit.

Summary

Tolkien acknowledges receipt of the contract for Farmer Giles of Ham and returns it signed, noting the initial 7.5% royalty rate as reasonable under the circumstances. Despite being preoccupied with academic term duties, Tolkien expresses hope that the book will sell well, though he does not consider it a worthy sequel to The Hobbit.

He describes his struggle to find time for writing the true sequel, hindered by a recent forced move due to taxation and lack of domestic help, which disrupted his work. Now residing in a small house near the town center with his workshop in college, Tolkien mentions his delight at Rayner Unwin's return to Trinity College.