Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin explains delay in finishing books

We all know the night is dark and full of terrors, but for some of us “Game of Thrones” fans, that famous quote has taken on a whole new meaning. As avid readers of George R.R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” series (the very basis for the HBO show that captivated millions and sparked endless debates), we’ve felt the same frustration shared by many. It’s a rare situation when the TV adaptation gets ahead of the source material, leaving fans of the books stranded since 2011. That’s the year “A Dance with Dragons,” the fifth of the planned seven books, was finally released, only for the story to come to a maddening halt. We’re left waiting, still longing for the final two books with no idea when they’ll arrive, if ever. And, truth be told, Martin doesn’t know either.

As you’ve probably guessed, this isn’t an update announcing the imminent arrival of ‘The Winds of Winter.’ Instead, we’re once again digging into the reasons behind the long delay in the delivery of George R.R. Martin’s magnum opus. However, this time, we’re getting some insight straight from Martin himself. He recently took part in an event hosted by Oxford Writers’ House, which included an extensive Q&A session that was later uploaded to their official YouTube channel. During the session, Martin spoke about his ongoing writing process or lack thereof and whether he would change anything about his finished books.

His answer offers significant insight into why the series remains unfinished.

Winter may be coming, but here’s why the winds of winter haven’t arrived yet

Cast your mind back to June 2015, when the season five finale of ‘Game of Thrones’ aired. Remember the shock of seeing Jon Snow (Kit Harington) brutally stabbed by his ‘brothers’ at The Wall, Caesar-style, only for the screen to go black? Now, imagine having to wait over a decade to find out what happens next. That’s the reality for fans of George R.R. Martin’s ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ series, who have been left in suspense since the last book was published in 2011.

So why the delay? Fans often cite the increasingly complex and sprawling storylines, the pressure of keeping up with the world’s most-watched series, and, of course, a bit of good old-fashioned procrastination. (It doesn’t help that Martin prefers to work on an operating system straight out of the 1980s.)

But the real reason may have only recently come to light. Martin recently revealed the big change he would be making to his books. After joking that he would want to finish them, he shared an anecdote about Gene Wolfe, the author of the fantasy series “The Book of the New Sun.” Wolfe completed all four books before sending them to a publisher, a strategy Martin now reflects on with a tinge of nostalgia.

“…when he finished the fourth book, he could see things from the first that didn’t fit anymore: where the book had strayed, where it had changed, so he could go back and revise the first book. And only when all four were finished did Gene submit the book and the series was purchased and published.”

Martin goes on to express his regret that he didn’t have the freedom to plan his entire story from the beginning, without the pressure of deadlines, the expectations of impatient fans, or other distractions. As he talks about this, there’s a clear sense of nostalgia in his voice, a nostalgia for how much simpler it could have been if he’d approached ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ with that kind of forethought. In his own words:

“That’s something I would envy, but I’ve never done it and I never could have done it, even now. Believe it or not, I’m not taking all this time to write ‘The Winds of Winter’ just because I think I’m Gene Wolfe now. I wish I had finished it years ago, but yeah, that’s the biggest thing I think I would change.”

In numerous posts on his personal blog, Martin has described himself as more of a “gardener” than an “architect” when it comes to storytelling. This approach means that he crafts his narratives by allowing them to develop organically, discovering the direction as he writes, rather than meticulously planning every detail from the start like an architect. This method, while creative, can lead to narrative dead ends and tangential plotlines. It seems likely that Martin has run into a dead end in the previous books (possibly with Daenerys Targaryen’s story in Essos) and now wishes he could go back and simplify the story with the benefit of hindsight.