Tolkien’s Language-First Method Built Middle-earth as a Total Work of Art

A person working on a Lord of the Rings movie says J.R.R. Tolkien’s storytelling began with his interest in creating Elvish languages. Tolkien then developed the cultures and stories those languages would support.

The approach is described as creating an entire culture—and what the speaker calls a “total work of art”—rather than simply writing a story. The source provides no further details about the movie project or the person’s role in it.