ADWD Release Date Part 2

[JCrew]

Not sure why the first thread was locked(too long?), but I was enjoying the discussion. Haven't heard anything from the Not a Blog for awhile. This new information (as in lack of information) makes me change the distribution curve for the release date from a normal shaped one to a bimodal one. He is either on the verge of announcing completion or he is under serious pressure to finish from the publisher or HBO or whatever and at least a year away.

[Wik]

I agree but IMO there is no real point in discussing/speculating about it. It's gonna get done when it gets done.

To me this is like drugs...as long as I don't think about it, I don't need to use it, so I am content on checking his homepage once a day and comming here to chat until I see the "OMG MY BOOK IS DONE COME AND GET IT" post on his website.

[Sweetmartin]

i think this thread must alive.

Mr. Martin works on so many parallel-and sideworks he cant get it done.sad,yes.

I think he will lose one time the overview,and then we have in ASOIAF( possible in ADWD) chapters from WILD CARDS.

[Jaime Martell]

I doubt it means anything but he hasn't touched his site in over two weeks- maybe he's writing alot?

I'm fine with it taking a long time as long as the book is of equal or greater length with ASoS

[Rhom]

I was just afraid he was tired of dealing with trolls. Seriously, the dude has said his blog is for his personal interests and thoughts. He tells us about football which he enjoys (and I like to read his thoughts on it) and people get on there and call him a hack and tell him to get back to work before he dies.

I wouldn't update my page either.

[Werthead]

GRRM was at the World Fantasy Convention last week and apparently also had business meetings to attend to (possibly related to ASoIaF but more likely to do with the imminent restart to the Wild Cards franchise), explaining his 'absence' from blogging and posting.

As for how close he may be, who knows? He chose not to attend Worldcon for the first time in twenty years in August to finish the book, but he hasn't updated on how much that helped in the progress on the book. He's finished a lot more chapters (including the prologue, which had been giving him lots of trouble), which is encouraging, but we do not know how much more work remains to be done. Bantam are expecting the book to be handed in before the end of the year, but only GRRM knows if he will able to do that.

The only conclusion we can draw is that we are far closer to the ending of the writing process than the start, and I would anticipate the book's completion to be announced within the next few months for publication before the end of 2008. And I may be wrong about that.

Good thing there's plenty of other good books coming out, eh?

[Jaime Martell]

i thought so, I wasn't sure how long he was at the Con; btw, i thought he wasn't doing any more of those until he wrapped ( was he a guest of honor or something?)

[AquariumDrinker]

He didn't want to do one in Japan, which would take over a month to do everything he would want to do over there. I doubt he has canceled cons in general.

[phrobin]

Well at least the Cowboys spanked the Giants ass last week. I can't believe a Jersey boy routes for a NY team.

[Wik]

I was just afraid he was tired of dealing with trolls. Seriously, the dude has said his blog is for his personal interests and thoughts. He tells us about football which he enjoys (and I like to read his thoughts on it) and people get on there and call him a hack and tell him to get back to work before he dies.

I wouldn't update my page either.

[Bird of the Canals]

GRRM was at the World Fantasy Convention last week and apparently also had business meetings to attend to (possibly related to ASoIaF but more likely to do with the imminent restart to the Wild Cards franchise), explaining his 'absence' from blogging and posting.

As for how close he may be, who knows? He chose not to attend Worldcon for the first time in twenty years in August to finish the book, but he hasn't updated on how much that helped in the progress on the book. He's finished a lot more chapters (including the prologue, which had been giving him lots of trouble), which is encouraging, but we do not know how much more work remains to be done. Bantam are expecting the book to be handed in before the end of the year, but only GRRM knows if he will able to do that.

The only conclusion we can draw is that we are far closer to the ending of the writing process than the start, and I would anticipate the book's completion to be announced within the next few months for publication before the end of 2008. And I may be wrong about that.

Good thing there's plenty of other good books coming out, eh?

Yeah, like A Feast for Crows LE =)

Did he have an ADWD panel? How was it if so? What about interviews?

[Xray the Enforcer]

Did he have an ADWD panel? How was it if so? What about interviews?

He read a revised Prologue. See that thread for details. (in ADWD spoilers forum)

He also answered questions regarding warging, the dragons and Wild Cards. See the WFC thread in the BwB forum for details on that.

He was on a panel as well -- when SF writers write fantasy and when fantasy writers write SF -- but it was at 10pm, and we had a party to run. There must have been one bro at that panel, but I don't know who it was.

I'm just jazzed about Wild Cards and Hunter's Run. ADWD will be published when it is published. JETBOY LIVES!

[dingosatemybaby]

He read a revised Prologue. See that thread for details. (in ADWD spoilers forum)

He also answered questions regarding warging, the dragons and Wild Cards. See the WFC thread in the BwB forum for details on that.

He was on a panel as well -- when SF writers write fantasy and when fantasy writers write SF -- but it was at 10pm, and we had a party to run. There must have been one bro at that panel, but I don't know who it was.

I'm just jazzed about Wild Cards and Hunter's Run. ADWD will be published when it is published. JETBOY LIVES!

I went to the panel. When Fantasy Becomes Science Fiction, and Science Fiction Becomes Fantasy.

Panelists: Joe Haldeman, Nancy Kress, George RR Martin, L.E. Modessit, Walter John Williams.

This was easily the best panel I attended all weekend. The discussion opened with Nancy Kress (moderating) posing a question to the panelists about what the differences are between the genres of science fiction and fantasy and how they blend. Martin set the tone for the evening by jumping right in and saying that there is no distinction between Science Fiction and Fantasy, that a story is just a story and that only the "furniture", or trappings of the story differentiate it. Many of the other panelists seemed to disagree with him, but Martin defended his assertion well, being frank and outspoken about his opinions as always.

Nancy Kress asked GRRM if he could take Game of Thrones and rewrite it as space opera, and she barely got the question out before he said emphatically, "Yes!"

Of the authors there, I believe only Martin has written in science fiction, fantasy and horror genres with great success his entire career. His statement about "a story is a story" remained throughout the panel as a theme, with the other writers bouncing ideas off that and (mostly) disagreeing.

L.E. Modessit came off like a complete TOOL - yapping on and on about how boring he is. Glad I never read any of his books. GRRM was saying that story and character are what people want to read about, and the compartmentalization of genre just tends to get in the way. Modessit continued to babble on about how he thinks when you write science fiction you *have to* explain everything to the nth degree. He cited one of his pet peeves as how socio-economic systems of entire galactic empires are never outlined in agonizing detail for the reader. YAWN. No one wants to see how the sausage is made, L.E.

GRRM continued to defend his point, citing his time serving on the TV series the Twilight Zone. He said the viewer tuned in to see the "weird shit" without needing to know how it all worked. The challenge he said was that the characters in the story didnt know that THEY were in a Twilight Zone episode, and when all the goofy stuff starts happening trying to explain it would just get in the way. They don't need to know why or how it works as long as the story was engaging.

I have to say that Joe Haldeman surprised me, never having heard the guy speak before. His first comment was to L.E. Modessit after Modessit made some remark about fantasy readers: "So basically you're saying that fantasy readers are fucking dumb." Howls of laughter. He then tried to talk about how every fantasy book written these days should be required to be listed somewhere on an F.D. list, at which point Kress moved the topic onto something else rather quickly.

Funny guy. I've read and enjoyed his books but never realized how cool the guy is. Unfortunately, he was at the end of the table and was forced to share a microphone with L.E. Modessit, who clutched the "shared" mic greedily in his hand most of the night, only yielding it to Haldeman when Joe reached for it and nearly bitch slapped him to get it.

As a result, Haldeman barely said two more words all night.

[Sweetmartin]

it looks thus,that we will wait one more year to get ADWD.

and waiting surely 5 years or more to have TWOW(hope that GRRM dont split it in 4 parts)

and 10 years or more for the TSOS(R.I.P)

[Xray the Enforcer]

As a result, Haldeman barely said two more words all night.

Gah, a pity. (I'm with George on this one, BTW. Stories are just stories. And, let's face it, many SF authors royally fuck up the details to suit their own ends. Shitty science makes me almost as angry as wooden characters.)

Did you stop by our party and we missed you?

[dingosatemybaby]

Unfortunately as (bad) luck would have it, I started to feel ill Friday morning when I arrived and continued to feel like crap all weekend. I intended on hunting you guys down, but the need for sleep was too great unfortunately.

[Xray the Enforcer]

Unfortunately as (bad) luck would have it, I started to feel ill Friday morning when I arrived and continued to feel like crap all weekend. I intended on hunting you guys down, but the need for sleep was too great unfortunately.

Ah. That's a bummer. (but at least I am gratified that it wasn't the case of you visiting the party and me not being around at the time.)

[Ran]

I'm probably being dumb, but an "F.D. list" is ... what exactly? Can't make heads or tails of it.

[dingosatemybaby]

I'm probably being dumb, but an "F.D. list" is ... what exactly? Can't make heads or tails of it.

The snip from my post above is:

I have to say that Joe Haldeman surprised me, never having heard the guy speak before. His first comment was to L.E. Modessit after Modessit made some remark about fantasy readers: "So basically you're saying that fantasy readers are fucking dumb." Howls of laughter. He then tried to talk about how every fantasy book written these days should be required to be listed somewhere on an F.D. list, at which point Kress moved the topic onto something else rather quickly.

My interpretation was an F.D. list was a "Fucking Dumb" list.

[A Time for Wolves]

OMG. When I first saw this thread, I had a jolt and thought for an instant that the release date was announced.

That said, I think spring/summer 2009.