C. S. Lewis
Lewis and fellow novelist J. R. R. Tolkien were close friends. They both served on the English faculty at Oxford University, and were active in the informal Oxford literary group known as the Inklings. According to Lewis's memoir "Surprised by Joy", he was baptised in the Church of Ireland, but fell away from his faith during adolescence. Lewis returned to Anglicanism at the age of 32, owing to the influence of Tolkien and other friends, and he became an "ordinary layman of the Church of England". Lewis's faith profoundly affected his work, and his wartime radio broadcasts on the subject of Christianity brought him wide acclaim.
Reception of J. R. R. Tolkien
Bootleg paperbacks published by Ace Books eventually found their way into colleges in the US in the 1960s. In response, a revised, authorized edition was published by Ballantine Books. The "hippie" following latched onto the book, giving its own spin to the work's interpretation, such as the Dark Lord Sauron representing the United States military draft during the Vietnam War, to the chagrin of the author who stated that "Many American fans enjoy the books in a way which I do not". 
Many fantasy series written in the period were created by fans of "The Lord of the Rings", such as the "Shannara" books by Terry Brooks.
There were active Tolkien enthusiasts within science fiction fandom from the mid-1950s. The first organized Tolkien fan group was "The Fellowship of the Ring", founded by fans including Ted Johnstone and Bruce Pelz at Pittcon, the 18th World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon) in 1960. Articles on "The Lord of the Rings" had appeared regularly since 1962 in the science fiction fanzine "Niekas", edited by Ed Meskys.