‘Winds Of Winter’ Release: George R.R. Martin Debunks False Reports And Rumors


The Winds of Winter, the highly anticipated sixth book in George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Fire and Ice series, has been in development for years. As the Game of Thrones HBO series continues its run, numerous fans have gotten a bit apprehensive about the progress that the acclaimed author has made with regards to his latest book. This has resulted in numerous speculations and rumors about when the novel would be released, with many of them being quite outlandish and downright inaccurate.

Responding to these numerous speculations about when his next novel would be out, A Song of Fire and Ice author George R.R. Martin has issued an official statement clarifying a number of rumors that have been emerging about the upcoming novel. In a post on his official blog, Martin effectively debunked a number of false reports and speculations about the upcoming book.

[Image by Mark Davis/Getty Images]

One of the most notable rumors that have emerged lately is the notion that The Winds of Winter would be released sometime around October this year. While the author has expressly stated that he is aiming for a 2017 release date, Martin has confirmed in his blog that no official date has been set with regards to The Winds of Winter‘s debut. What the author stated, however, is that he is hoping that the book would be finished sometime this year. Responding to a fan who demanded updates for the book’s progress, the author gave a short, concise response.

“You really think statements like that would make a difference? Ah, you sweet summer child. I have years of experience with this that tells me otherwise. But okay, I will try it your way.”

“Not done yet, but I’ve made progress. But not as much as I hoped a year ago when I thought to be done by now. I think it will be out this year. (But hey, I thought the same thing last year).”

Thus, while The Winds of Winter appears to be nearing its completion, there is simply no official date for the book’s release. If any, fans of the A Song of Fire and Ice series could rest assured that the progress is being made in the novel. Thus, it would only be a matter of time before George R.R. Martin finishes the latest installment of his critically-acclaimed series.

Further clearing up the confusion about The Winds of Winter‘s supposed October release date, Martin also cleared up a number of rumors that emerged regarding The Book of Swords, an anthology that is set to be released this October. The Book of Swords, edited by anthology veteran Gardner Dozois, includes a story by George R.R. Martin, and this has led to numerous false reports stating that the Game of Thrones author would be co-editing the upcoming compilation. Other rumors have gone even further, stating that The Book of Swords would be Martin’s own book.

[Image by Kevin Winter/Getty Images]

According to the author, however, these rumors are completely false, as Martin stated that he simply provided a story that would be included in The Book of Swords. His story, The Sons of the Dragon, is a narrative featuring some nifty politics in the land of Westeros. Apart from providing a story, however, his involvement in The Book of Swords is marginal.

“However, there is a lot that’s wrong out there as well. THE BOOK OF SWORDS is not my book. I didn’t write but a small part of it, and I didn’t edit it, nor even co-edit it. Gardner is one of my oldest friends and he and I have co-edited a number of anthologies together. We did OLD MARS and OLD VENUS together. We did SONGS OF LOVE & DEATH and DOWN THESE STRANGE STREETS together. We did the huge award-winning cross-genre anthologies WARRIORS, DANGEROUS WOMEN, and ROGUES together. But we did not do THE BOOK OF SWORDS together.”

With this information in mind, it would appear that The Winds of Winter would be released quite soon. In a lot of ways, fans of the A Song of Fire and Ice series are best advised to be patient with the author and his progress with the upcoming book. After all, George R.R. Martin has always been an author who values quality over quantity. Thus, when The Winds of Winter finally does get a worldwide release, fans could rest assure that it would be a worthy addition to the critically and commercially acclaimed book series.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXy3-f4zZlg

[Featured Image by Kevin Winter/Getty Images]

Share this article: ‘Winds Of Winter’ Release: George R.R. Martin Debunks False Reports And Rumors
More from Inquisitr