George R.R. Martin says he is 'three-quarters of the way done' with The Winds of Winter
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Now that season 1 of House of the Dragon has finished, how long will fans of the fantasy franchise have to wait for their next Westeros fix? Well, while promoting the new illustrated book The Rise of the Dragon on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert on Tuesday, author George R.R. Martin offered an optimistic update on his progress with the next book in his A Song of Ice and Fire series.
"I am making progress with The Winds of Winter, but it's still not done yet. I think it's going to be a very big book," Martin said. "I think I'm about three-quarters of the way done. The characters all interweave. I've actually finished with some of the characters, I've got their whole story, but not others. So I have to finish all that weaving. Still gonna take me awhile."
Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic 'A Song of Ice and Fire' author George R.R. Martin
Fans have been eagerly awaiting The Winds of Winter since its predecessor A Dance With Dragons was published back in 2011, timed to the season 1 finale of Game of Thrones. Stephen Colbert did some quick math, calculating that since it took Martin 10 years to complete 75 percent of the next novel ("that's depressing," Martin remarked), then the author should only need another three years to finish.
But progress has not necessarily been consistent. Last year, Martin wrote on his blog that his productivity had greatly increased while isolated at home during the COVID-19 pandemic. So maybe he'll stay on a roll and finish the book sooner than Colbert predicts.
Even then, though, The Winds of Winter is only supposed to be the sixth of seven books in A Song of Ice and Fire. Martin knows the pressure won't let up.
"I do know one thing for certain," Martin said. "We're going to deliver it, and it's going to be published, and the next day I'll get the first tweet asking, 'Where's A Dream of Spring?'"
Watch Colbert's full interview with Martin above.
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