How a Problem with Tolkien's Modern English Helped Inspire Spellwright

(The following post was written for http://voyageronline.wordpress.com/ and will be posted there around when the book hits Australian shores. When asked to write a post for Australian fantasy readers, I struck upon this topic by considering  possible similarities in linguistic experiences between someone who'd grown up in Sydney (though my knowledge of Australia is admittedly limited) and someone who'd grown up in San Francisco—both young, Pacific cities dominated by English but still alive...