The Lord of the Rings and the Power of Four

Okay, so I killed my hands (Tendonitis) last week going over SUGAR RUSH with a metaphoric fine tooth comb before sending it out because of several requests for pages, both Partials and Fulls.  To think, I'd just whined to Tia, I think it was, about how I wasn't getting any requests, except one, and then I get a bunch all at once!  By the way, Tia just signed with Carina Press, Harlequin's new digital imprint.  Yeah, Tia!
http://www.tianevitt.com/weblog
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So, I was going over SUGAR RUSH and it brought to mind something Jacqueline Lichtenberg taught me.
http://editingcircle.blogspot.com/   As writers, we tend to internalize elements from favorite stories.
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Well, I've always written in Threes, thanks to STAR TREK (Kirk, Spock, McCoy,) STAR WARS (Han, Leia, Luke,) and LORD OF THE RINGS (Frodo, Sam, Gollum.)  I didn't know why I did this until I asked Jacqueline.  It's the Thesis, Antithesis, and Synthesis thing.  I've blogged about this before.
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Anyway, I've got the Power of Three in SUGAR RUSH.  I've got Adrian, Ophelia, and Martin.  They're the Hero, Heroine, and Villain, respectively.  Their dynamic is similar to Frodo, Sam, and Gollum, come to think of it, except that Martin is the central Big Bad and Ophelia knows it.  Oh, and Martin is a sizzling hottie!  I've enjoyed how sizzling hot villains make life so complicated for heroines, but that's another post.
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When I was writing SUGAR RUSH, I realized I was coming up with a protagonists' dynamic like in the movie, THE PRINCESS BRIDE, and so, for fun, I reference that movie several times.  Just like that story, I've got the dashing Pirate, the beautiful Princess, a Witty Spaniard (actually, the heroine's twin sister,) and the Loveable Powerhouse.
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So, I was going over SUGAR RUSH and realized the PRINCESS BRIDE isn't the only story with the Power of Four which I love.  In THE LORD OF THE RINGS, we also see it in the four hobbits, four best friends getting together and heading off on an adventure which none of them truly comprehend.  Their strength resides in their love and loyalty for each other, which grows into courage, laying down their lives to defend each other.  Awesome.
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Oh, I know I'll never be as great as Tolkien, but it is interesting to look back on a story I've created and see how other great stories have impacted me as a writer.  It's just another reason why a
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writer ought to be a reader as well.