Game of Thrones surpassed the books it was based upon, and even ended. However the book series is till at least two books from its conclusion. The next in line is The Winds of Winter, which has been delayed time and again in the past few years. In a recent interview with WGN Radio, author George R. R. Martin explained why the book was taking him this long. Read on!
He first talked about how his popularity affected him:
āI do indeed have millions of people waiting for this book to come out, which is very gratifyingā¦but some of them are extremely impatient and some of them are full of their own ideas about the fates of the various characters. Iām glad they can get so emotionally involved with these characters, but sometimes I yearn for the days when I could just work in quiet obscurityā¦but those days are gone for me, Iām afraid. This is the reality of my life now.ā
He then talked about the disruption in his process:
āIf my writing is going well, and Iām really āin Westeros,ā it does haunt me day and night. Iām laying there in bed, Iām waiting to go to sleep, the lights are out, and the scenes that Iām gonna write tomorrow are in my head. Or maybe the scenes Iām gonna write next week, or maybe the scenes from a different chapterā¦I canāt control it, but something starts filling my head and the characters start coming alive, and I start hearing snatches of dialogue, and I drift to sleep with Westeros and Ice and Fire in my head, haunting me.ā
George also discussed how he had previously tried to keep up with the showās storyline, but couldnāt:
āThere was a period where the show caught and past me, and I hadnāt anticipated that happening, so there was a tremendous amount of stress on me a few years ago when that was about to happen but hadnāt happened yet, and I was desperately trying to finish Winds and stay ahead,ā Martin remembered. āAnd it didnāt work. The amount of stress that was on me at the time slowed me down rather than speeding me up.
Now that the showās over, any stress in that regard is done, but of course, we have five successor shows in various stages of developmentāand one of themās just finished shooting [the pilot episode] in Northern Ireland and another oneās very close to getting a pilot order. Iām involved with those as well. Game of Thrones, that particular story, may be over on TV, but itās not over for meāI still have these two more books to write. And thereās other stories in the world of Westeros, which is an entire world, and Iām still deeply involved with those. So believe me, thereās plenty to keep me busy.ā
George also said that he wishes his success had arrived at an earlier point in his life:
āI do sometimes wish it had happened to me 30 years ago, rather than happening to me at my age, because it does kind of wear me out sometimes,ā he said. āBut I still have a fair amount of energy and I still get a fair amount done.ā
Well, now letās stop pestering him about the next book, and let him write. What do you think? Talk to us in the comments, down below!