George Martin, author of the A Song of Ice and Fire series of novels, said that the sixth book in the series, The Winds of Winter, which he has been working on for over eight years, is 75% complete.
The science fiction writer spoke about this during a live broadcast organized by Random House.
The author noted that the penultimate book of the cycle will be the largest of all his earlier published works.
“I repeat: this is a big, big book.
It's not easy to work on it.
It will probably be longer than any previous volume in this story.
A Dance with Dragons and A Storm of Swords are the two longest books in the series.
he recalled.
— The volume of both is about one and a half thousand handwritten pages.
I think the finished version of the new book will be even longer, and I'm about three-quarters of the way there."
At the same time, Martin stressed that even when the book is completely written, it will not be published immediately - it is possible that the publisher will decide to divide the story into two parts.
In addition, the editors will have to think about the best strategy for releasing the work.
“And, of course, this begs the question: when I finish this gigantic, dragon-sized book, will my friends at Random House insist that I divide it into two parts.
We will find out everything, but first I must finish it, I must bring the matter to the end, ”he explained.
During the live broadcast, the writer complained about the angry readers and expressed disappointment with the fans, who branded him a "liar" and criticized him for not meeting the deadlines for the release of "The Winds of Winter", which the writer himself set several times.
“Everyone is indignant that I“ lied ”.
But in making these predictions, I never lied.
I couldn’t make them more precise,” Martin said.
“But in general, I think I overestimate my ability to finish what I start and underestimate the amount of interference and other projects, other obligations that will distract me.”
Speaking about a specific release date for the book, the writer said that he is doing everything possible to bring it closer.
At the same time, he does not intend to make any further promises about when the novel will go to press.
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“I gave up forecasts because people keep pushing and pushing: “When will you finish it?”.
I try to give the forecast as optimistic as possible, taking into account the situation, and then (whenever. -
RT
) something happens, ”the writer explained.
Meanwhile, the science fiction writer is sure that as soon as the book is published, they will not leave him alone and will immediately begin to ask about the release of the last part of the saga.
“One day the book will be finished and published, and the next day someone will ask me: “When will we see Dreams of Spring?”
I already foresee the future,” Martin concluded.
Martin keeps the plot of the long-awaited book a secret, but it is known that in it the writer will bring back to life some of the heroes who died in the series, and some of those who remained alive, on the contrary, will die.
The Winds of Winter was originally supposed to be released in 2014, long before the end of Game of Thrones, but the series finale was filmed well before Martin finished the book.
The writer assured fans that the literary cycle will end differently.
Martin's fans have repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that the writer has delayed the release of the book for many years, and some have completely lost faith that he will ever complete it.
They made this conclusion due to the fact that Martin is simultaneously working on many other projects, among which is the book "Who's Who in Westeros", the second volume of the series "Fire and Blood", the first part of which formed the basis of the series "Dragon's House" .
At the same time, Martin is working on novels about Dunk and Egg, and is also involved in a number of animated and game spin-offs of his fantasy universe.