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J.R.R. Tolkien fought in some of the most lethal battles of World War I. If he died there, how would literary history evolve without him? If we assume that C.S. Lewis' creativity still unfolds in a similar manner (which is surely not a given, as Lewis and Tolkien influenced each other heavily - for instance, Lewis might not have converted to christianity without Tolkien), the fantasy genre would be dominated by his less meticulous style of worldbuilding and more child-oriented diction. Would it be taken seriously today?
Or would there be another author creating overly popular adult fantasy works that make the genre "socially acceptable", someone whose works were overshadowed by Tolkien's IOTL?

Obviously, with a PoD this earlyy plus butterflies plus the unpredictability of creative geniuses, it's a silly idea to try and work out a plausible scenario. Nevertheless I'd be interested in your ideas.
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