From the Straight Dope Message Board – If LotR Had Been Written By Someone Else!?. See Lord of The Rings in the styles of Ernest Hemingway, Tom Clancy, E E ‘Doc’ Smith, James Joyce, Ian Fleming and more!
For example, Jack Vance
The party emerged from Mordor, each looking thoughtful. Aragorn spoke first.
‘It is needless to say that we all regret the loss of Gandalf. He was truly a person of eminence and grace’.
‘Yet’, interrupted Legolas, ‘The cynical and suspicious might find your heartfelt grief at his untimely demise perhaps lacking a touch of sincerity, given that his death at this time perforce elects you to leader of our little group’
‘ The implication in your words, Legolas, I find disturbing in the extreme’, answered Aragorn.
‘As do I, although the implication in question is perhaps a different one’, said Boromir. ‘Why is Aragorn, as you say, ‘perforced elected’ to leadership? Surely this matter should be referred to a larger referendum than just yourself, Legolas, intelligent though you may be’
‘I used the specific appellation…’, began Legolas. Gimli interrupted.
‘Regardless, and I must say I find these small-minded squabbles of yours irksome and inappropriate, we are on the borders of Lothlorien, a realm whose inhabitants have certain unusual customs, which the unwary traveller often falls foul of. I suggest that our friend Frodo renders the Ring on to me until we are through Lothlorien and in a place of more condign safety, or perhaps an even greater period of time’.
Pippin frowned. ‘Your suggestion has merit, although I would deem it wiser that someone more suitable, for instance I, should have the laborious and dangerous duty of actually carrying the Ring…’
Or William F. McGonagall
Beautiful Stony Bridge of the Dwarven mines!
Alas! I am very sorry to say
That two lives have been taken away
On the last (Third Age) day of 1879,
Which will be remember’d for a very long time.
‘Twas about seven o’clock at night,
And the Balrog it burn’t with all its might,
And the fire came pouring down,
And the dark orcs seem’d to frown,
And the Demon of the fire seem’d to say-
“I’ll pass across the Bridge today.”
When the party left Rivendell
The Fellowship’s hearts were light and they felt quite well,
But Boromir threw a terrific strop,
Which made their hearts for to stop,
And many of the Fellowship with fear did hum-
“I hope Elbereth Gilthoniel will send us safe across the Bridge of Khazad-dum.”
But when the hobbits were ready to feed their tum,
The Balrog he gathered his orcish scum,
And shook the whole structure of the Bridge of Khazad-dum
On the last (Third Age) day of 1879,
Which will be remember’d for a very long time.
So the Wizard mov’d slowly along the Bridge of Khazad-dum,
Until he was looking at the Balrog’s bum,
Then the whole bridge gave way with a hiss,
And down went Gandalf and Fiend into the abyss!
The Fiery Fiend did loudly quip,
Because he’d gotten Gandalf with his whip,
On the last (Third Age) day of 1879,
Which will be remember’d for a very long time.
As soon as the catastrophe which could not have been worse
The alarm from mouth to mouth spread from river to firth,
And the cry rang out all o’er Middle Earth,
The Khazad-dum Bridge is blown down – O Elbereth!
And in the Fellowship from Rivendell,
Of which all the people were scared as h*ll,
Because they all heard Gandalf’s yell
“Fly, you fools!” Well, none had breath to to tell
How the disaster happen’d on the last last (Third Age) day of 1879,
Which will be remember’d for a very long time.