quarantine 'em

Next I'll have the main character stay at home while nothing happens for nine years

It's 1/4 of the book before the main character leaves his home country

TOM BOMBADIL: Danger up ahead! FELLOWSHIP: Okay! [falls into warned-of danger] TOM: [rescues them] TOLKIEN: This was a good use of pages

350 pages in, they climactically decide to destroy the One Ring at Mount Doom, which was ALREADY DECIDED THREE HUNDRED PAGES AGO

There are so many better solutions to the One Ring problem that the entire Council of Elrond is dedicated to papering over those plot holes

And most importantly, tell, don't show! Better if Gandalf EXPLAINS his thrilling solo adventures AFTER returning safely to his friends

Why explain the awful consequences of Ringwraith capture BEFORE the attack, when you can do so two chapters after everybody escaped safely?

To say nothing of the solution to every "The characters are out of food" problem being "Someone just gives them a lot of food"