It’s almost been 2 years since Game of Thrones’ bittersweet - or just outright bitter - final season brought an end to A Song of Ice and Fire’s core story on television. But even long before that, hardcore Game of Thrones fans had been pining for George R.R. Martin to finish The Winds of Winter for years, but now things are moving along nicely according to the author.
The last of Martin’s mainline novels to be published was A Dance With Dragons, released almost a decade ago in 2011, his longest book in the series but one through which David Benioff and D. B. Weiss had no problems adapting most of by the time Game of Thrones season 5 was done. Ever since then Game of Thrones had to make up the details surrounding Martin’s core idea for how the stories within his books will unfold.
Martin himself has touched upon these differences on several occasions, but now the latest update in his “Not a Blog” personal blog suggests 2020 was indeed a very productive year in terms of writing, especially in things concerning the world of A Song of Ice and Fire. Though Martin tends to be fairly tight-lipped on specifics, he disclosed having written hundreds and hundreds of pages for The Winds of Winter, calling it “the best year I’ve had on WOW since I began it.”
In the same entry, Martin reflected on what kind of year was 2020 for him and the country as a whole, calling the worst years he’s ever lived through since 1968, reflecting on politics, and mourning the loss of close friends. However, on a more positive note, he expressed his satisfaction with having such a fruitful writing sting without even teasing any potential dates for him to finish the book because people “on the internet take that as a ‘promise’...” and then try to hold him accountable for it.
From the looks of it, there is no real indication to believe that The Winds of Winter will be making its way to bookshelves any sooner than House of the Dragon’s speculated 2022 release date on HBO. Despite all that, Martin does seem to be in high spirits over his work in recent months, partly due to the effects of isolation, as he continues to encourage people to take care of themselves and abide to quarantine rules as much as possible.
The real upside to Martin taking so long to write his final two novels to close out A Song of Ice and Fire is that these books will reap upon the massive fanbase that was built by Game of Thrones’ incredibly successful eight-year run on television. Considering the series’ much-maligned last seasons, the only way to go is up, no matter how long it takes.
Game of Thrones is now available on HBO Max.
Source: georgerrmartin.com