At this point, it feels like George RR Martin is intentionally trying to wind up Game Of Thrones fans.
When the eighth series of the show left so many of us unsatisfied, many comforted themselves with the idea that the final books in the A Song of Ice and Fire series were on the way, and they would wrap up the franchise properly.
The wait for new novels had already been a long one by that point. The most recent novel in the series, A Dance With Dragons, was published back in 2011. The Winds of Winter, the sixth of seven planned books in his series, is still yet to see the light of day.
Sadly, it doesn’t look like fans will be getting it any time soon either, with George taking on project after project and appearing to leave the novels on the back burner.
‘I have a zillion other things to do,’ Martin wrote on his blog in February, confirming that he still had hundreds of pages to write.
‘My plate is full to overflowing. Every time I wrap up one thing, three more things land on me.’
Brilliant.
We’ll forever be grateful for George for bringing Game of Thrones into the world, but what is actually keeping him from finishing the books? Here’s every project he’s got on the go.
His huge deal with HBO and all the spin-offs
Game of Thrones might have finished in 2019, but there’s a load of spin-offs in the works that will keep George occupied for years.
The writer has reportedly signed an eight-figure deal with HBO for five more years of programming, which means he’ll have plenty on his plate in the future.
It’s great news for TV fans, as we know we’ll be getting George to work first-hand on expanding the Game of Thrones universe, but it means fans of the books will likely have a lot longer to wait until they get to read A Dance With Dragons as a result.
What are those TV projects? The Westeros franchise already includes the upcoming House Of The Dragon, and at least five other TV adaptations.
House of Dragon is set centuries before the events of Game Of Thrones, based on the early years of the Seven Kingdoms and the once ruling Targaryen family.
Elsewhere, George previously confirmed the Tales Of Dunk and Egg, which is a new and possibly animated series based on three of his novellas.
More unconfirmed projects include Nine Voyages, which will follow the story of Lord Corlys Velaryon, aka The Sea Snake.
There’s also the 10,000 Ships, which is a rumoured project believed to be focused around the legendary warrior Princess Nymeria.
An unnamed Flea Bottom project set in the poorest slum area of King’s Landing is also alleged to be in its early stages. Fans have also spotted a mysterious A Song Of Ice and Fire project listed on the executive producer Vince Gerardis’s website under ‘current projects’.
His decision to become a playwright
We’ve done serious procrastinating in the past, but we’ve never written an entire play to get out of finishing a big project. George has, though.
New reports claim that Westeros is moving to the West End, with George writing a new stage play set in the same universe as Game of Thrones.
The play is thought to cover The Great Tourney at Harrenhal, a storyline which took place just 16 years before the events of the Game of Thrones series.
The tourney itself is the biggest and most popular competition in Westeros, much like their equivalent of the olympics.
All the world’s a stage, but we can’t help but wish he’d channel his writing efforts into the novels instead.
Wild Cards
It’s not just A Song of Ice and Fire George is known for writing, either.
It was announced back in 2018 that his Wild Card book series was going into production at Hulu. Things are going full steam ahead on the series, although it was announced last month that the show has now moved to Peacock. George is acting as executive producer on the series.
The series follows the disastrous events surrounding the Wild Card virus, which is a fictional alien pathogen released across Manhattan in 1946. Those that survive its effects develop superpowers, while the virus sweeps through the rest of humanity.
Sounds like a nice, relaxing watch after the pandemic, then.
Who Fears Death
As well as working on his own TV projects, George is also spending time working on other people’s. We have to say, though, this is one we’re really interested in.
George is teaming up with Tessa Thompson to produce Who Fears Death, which is a post-apocalyptic fantasy set in North Africa.
The HBO series is based on an adaptation of Nnedi Okorafor’s award-winning 2011 novel, and sounds like one to watch out for.
Roadmarks
Another part of his deal with HBO, George is being brought on board to develop a new adaptation of a sci-fi novel called Roadmarks.
The network is hoping George can sprinkle some of his gold dust on the series, which is based on Roger Zelazny’s novel about a road that travels through time.
Sure. Might as well.
His blog
George is one of the most prolific bloggers of our time, and his posts are like an epic series of novels in themselves. Please stop keeping us so well updated George!
Game of Thrones can be streamed on Sky Atlantic and Now.
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