Now that it’s official that “The Winds of Winter” would not be released before, during, and even shortly after Season 6 of the HBO hit series “Game of Thrones,” the pressure is now off on critically-acclaimed author George R.R. Martin.
Latest reports seem to indicate that the earliest that the sixth book from the fantasy novel series “A Song of Ice and Fire” could come out is in 2017. As to whether it will come out before, during, or after Season 7 of “Game of Thrones,” that would be another story.
One thing is confirmed from all of these is that the seventh and final book of the series titled “A Dream of Spring” will come out long after the “Game of Thrones” has ended its run on HBO. It was previously reported that “Game of Thrones” can only be as good as seven or eight seasons but that would largely depend on how things shape up both in the series and the book in the next few months or years.
Martin certainly got a breather from all the pressure being put on him as regards the release of “The Winds of Winter” since fans and viewers of “Game of Thrones” have been so accustomed to receiving spoilers for the TV series year in and year out. It is only this year that they were not able to get a dose of their spoilers for the upcoming season of the popular show.
Book reading for Martin
George Martin was recently in Mysticon in Roanoke, Virginia where he facilitated a book reading of “The Winds of Winter.”
He could have skipped the event so that he could focus on finishing writing the book but his appearance in the event was booked two years prior and was already sold out months in advance so he really felt that he could turn it down, notes the Winter is Coming.
Unfortunately for those hoping that Martin would read a new chapter in “The Winds of Winter,” the author merely re-read aloud 1.5 chapters which were previously released before. They were actually the two Arianne chapters. And as usual, Martin did not allow anyone to record him reading aloud from the book.
There was a brief Q&A after the book reading and fans started asking questions on when “The Wind of Winter” is coming out. Instead of answering with a time frame, Martin said that it will come out once he is finished writing the book. When asked if Jon Snow is dead, Martin did not offer any response.
As if to top the event, there was also a cake served and Martin happily had his share of it after the book reading.
What if the book does not come out?
After “The Winds of Winter” did not come out as supposedly planned and scheduled, there are speculations now going on what will happen if, for whatever reason, George Martin does not finish it.
Some critics say that the book fans of “A Song of Ice and Fire” can simply look to Isaac Asimov’s “Foundation” series for answers. The book series never really ended yet it’s not bad, notes iDigital Times.
Asimov began his “Foundation” series when he was still a young man. The first three books in the series came out in novel form in 1951, 1952, and 1953. The author then took a break for almost 30 years, and finally in 1982, he wrote the sequel titled “Foundation’s Edge.”
A few more years later, he wrote two more sequels and two prequels. He wanted to continue the mainline of the series, which in the end covered only the first 500 or so years of the interregnum between the first and second Galactic Empires. Asimov died and he was not able to finish the series but he was working on it at the time of his death.