George R.R. Martin is constantly being pestered about his work. Fans of the A Song of Ice and Fire series have been eagerly awaiting the next book in the series, The Winds of Winter, but it has been over ten years since the last installment, so people are … well, testy.
Recently, with his contribution to the game Elden Ring being made public, and the fact that he is heavily involved in HBO’s other Game of Thrones-related projects, the author is getting more flack than usual. And as a Jets fan, I know he’s used to some of this—but one can only take so much.
Yesterday, on “Not a Blog,” he acknowledged a lot of this and made it clear that—despite the fact that, for many, only the novel matters—there are other projects he’s working on, and they all matter to him.
Rightfully so.
“Of course I am still working on THE WINDS OF WINTER,” he states. “I have stated that a hundred times in a hundred venues, having to restate it endlessly is just wearisome. I made a lot of progress on WINDS in 2020, and less in 2021… but ‘less’ is not ‘none.'”
He then broke down all of his current writing responsibilities in the A Song of Ice & Fire world, which goes beyond Winter.
“The world of Westeros, the world of A SONG OF ICE & FIRE, is my number one priority, and will remain so until the story is told. But Westeros has become bigger than THE WINDS OF WINTER, or even A SONG OF ICE & FIRE. In addition to WINDS, I also need to deliver the second volume of Archmaester Gyldayn’s history, FIRE & BLOOD. (Thinking of calling that one BLOOD & FIRE, rather than just F&B, Vol 2). Got a couple hundred pages of that one written, but there’s still a long way to go. I need to write more of the Dunk & Egg novellas, tell the rest of their stories, especially since there’s a television series about them in development. There’s a lavish coffee table book coming later this year, an illustrated, condensed version of FIRE & BLOOD done with Elio Garcia and Linda Antonsson (my partners on THE WORLD OF ICE AND FIRE), and my Fevre River art director, Raya Golden. And another book after that, a Who’s Who in Westeros. And that’s just the books.”
Then, there is House of the Dragon, the first successor show to go forward and it has “taken a ton of [his] time and attention this year.” Martin also mentioned that when it comes to all these new shows he is “deeply, heavily involved in every one.”
He explained: “It’s my world, and while I have been working closely with some fantastic writers and showrunners, ultimately it is up to me to try to keep the canon… well, canonical… and to do all I can to help make the new shows great. (And I love these stories too).” And, well, considering what happened when he wasn’t deeply involved … I get it. Since the series has become so successful, there is just a lot he is developing for HBO and HBO Max:
“So far, I am very excited. HOUSE OF THE DRAGON has wrapped in London and is now in post-production. What I have seen, I have loved. I am eager to see more. I am excited about the other successor shows as well, however. I am dying to tell you all about them, but I am not supposed to, so…
Well, maybe there a few things I can tell you. Things that HBO has previously announced, or hinted at, or…
We are developing live action shows for HBO, and animated shows for HBO Max. No, can’t tell you how many. But it is my hope that a number of these shows will get on the air. Not all, no, it is never all, but more than one. I certainly hope so. Some of the ideas we are working on are quite different in tone and approach than what has gone before, and that thrills me. The world of Westeros (and Essos, etc) is huge, and there is room in it for many types of stories, about a wide range of characters.”
Basically, dad is busy, and while I think it is fair to be eager and joke about his many projects, harassing him endlessly doesn’t help. Not many fantasy writers get this opportunity to do such expansive world-building in other formats, and Martin is taking it.
I wish him luck.
(via IGN, image)
