Braavos is on TV, but still WoW is not in sight.

[FalseKnight]

For the former, of course he believes it - it's true. That is what he cares most about: he's said so, and there is frankly no good reason not to accept that. I think you really need to know someone pretty darn well to feel qualified to say that they're wrong about what matters to them most. Even then, it's a pretty brassy thing to say.

As for the latter, just, no. GRRM is not the kind of guy who tells people what they want to hear, knowing that it's false. Someone started a thread the other day asking if he'd lie in a SSM - it was pointed out that his track record shows that he never has. He's terrible at evading questions, even. He's not that guy. In any case, it would be dumb - he knows it would cause trouble later.

No, if GRRM says nothing matters more to him in his professional life than finishing this series, you can take that as actual gospel.

But you follow this sentence immediately by making one of them - that he does too many side-projects (ignoring the facts that they don't take up much time, and that he did just as many when writing the first three books). So yes, people do make these arguments, all the time.

Here's the argument you gave, "well, if he cared, he'd never do anything else." That's not the same as arguing that he does too many side projects. No one ever said he should do nothing other than write ASoIaF. People probably used the argument from his lack progress for AFfC and ADwD, but I haven't seen anyone use it for TWoW. GRRM never updates his progress, so that argument would be incoherent.

Oh, and no you can't take his word for gospel on his work. Recall his statement upon publishing AFfC that he wrote a whole book as big as that book. That's what readers wanted to hear, but it wasn't really true. He blamed the Meereenese Knot, but that's the early part of ADwD. It happened concurrently with the events of AFfC. Presumably that would have been part of that whole other book he had written. Believe him if you wish, sweet summer child, but others don't have to trust him.

[The Dragon has three heads]

It's about chronology. They can go off reservation with storylines as long as big events still happen, daznaks, cersei's walk etc.

Season 5 will be the final ADWD material. And if GRRMs publisher is smart, winds will come out just before it airs.

Guess we'll see.

[mormont]

Oh, and no you can't take his word for gospel on his work. Recall his statement upon publishing AFfC that he wrote a whole book as big as that book.

I'm not even sure what statement you're referring to. I don't remember ever reading it. Without a source and context it's hard to say more, but I would point out that there exist several possibilities here:

1. You're misremembering exactly what he said.

2. You misinterpreted what he said.

3. The statement was a figure of speech or exaggeration, not intended to be taken literally. (The number of statements that GRRM has made over the years that are clearly not intended to be taken literally, but were taken as such by some fans, is legion.)

Now, since I don't recall the statement, and I'm sure it would be well known if it was genuinely misleading, I suspect it's 1. or 2. But I can't say without knowing more.

Believe him if you wish, sweet summer child, but others don't have to trust him.

Nobody has to trust anyone. But at the same time, it's fair to point out that mistrusting a man's word is something you should only do with good reason. I suspect that in age and life experience, I'm as far from a 'sweet summer child' as anyone: but it's that life experience that leads me to beware of easy cynicism.

[Rockroi]

He cares. I can't imagine an artist or creative person putting this much into such a wildly successful project and NOT caring.

And that's not the issue. It never has been.

He cares. The question is: how much?

I know what he says- he says that he cares more than anything else, etc. I can't imagine that's accurate. What used to be a joke is now a widely held belief- George RR Martin is working very slowly and far slower than he worked when he started the series. His other side projects, his travel and the fruits of his labor have divided his attention (as well they should- like anyone else, if I were extremely successful at my craft I would want to enjoy what that labor wrought me). And while I am sure he cares... he has divided attention. He still cares, just not enough to move faster; and not as focused as before.

I can't blame him. Butt I'm also not going to talk silly-talk and say that he cares so much and is working as hard as he can. He's not and we have to either wait or complain. Some do both.

[King Tommen]

I'm trying to figure out what exactly is the point of releasing so many sample chapters of TWoW. I get having one at the end of the previous paperback and maybe one more on your website to tease something. But I think at this point, we've got what, like 5 that have been released or will shortly be released?

I don't really want to read the book this way and I don't know why releasing a sample chapter every 6 months is thought to be a good marketing strategy. The people who want to continue to read the books were on boards sample chapters or no sample chapters.

This is kind of like chinese water torture and it also makes some of the early experience of reading the book when it finally does come out a bit of a slog.

[Rockroi]

King Tommen:

Here, I feel the need to defend Martin. I don't think Martin releases sample chapters so that people will read his books or as some sort of marketing ploy or anything else.

I think Martin releases sample chapters because many readers like them and Martin likes his readers.

He's doing it to be nice, and I really don't want to fault a guy for that.

[Addam Marbro]

You also don't have to read them.

[Colonel Green]

Depending on what sort of TWOW material (if any) ends up in season 5, I've been wondering if GRRM might end up releasing those parts online (if feasible) beforehand (the most likely inclusion, the Battle of Meereen, already has several of its component chapters released).

[TimeforTravel]

I certainly hope Dorne and the Iron Islands will be included in some way and that AFFC and ADWD will take up 1.5 season. But allright, let's go with the worst possible situation regarding the show overtaking the books: 7 seasons with no breaks.

Don't forget that ADWD was originally planned to release at the end of 2007. On GRRM's not a blog he stated at the beginning of 2007 that he hoped the book would be done by then. But it did release in 2011 because of several writing issues, a possible time jump, the Meereneese knot etc. He had to rewrite almost the entire book and some parts more than once. If TWOW doesn't have these kind of problems (and we don't know that, nor does GRRM, so him not making predictions only says he doesn't want to dissapoint his fanbase again by saying something like "the book will probably be done before december this year") the book should be done at the beginning of 2015 (maybe earlier) with market release a few months later. If he's done at the start of 2015, he's got like 2,5 years max to finish book 7 before the last season is all said and done. Book 7 may release a few months after season 7, but I'm sure the people with a spoiler phobia can avoid the show for two months.

And to top it off:

George may finish before the end of 2014

The show may take longer than 7 seasons or season 7 may air a few months later than april

which together may give George 3 or 4 years to write ADOS.

There is still enough hope!

[Yago]

No Raff in the show :(

[Winnief]

The release of "Mercy" gave me this teeny tiny spark of hope, that Martin may get us TWOW at least by 2015, which buys him a couple years for ADOS-and writing the ending in some ways might be the easiest part-it could practically write itself, and he could give his chapter drafts to D&D as he writes them, so that ADOS and Season 7 could come out at roughly the same time...and still have the right tone for each.

[metr0man]

I fully expect the climax that Dance was leading to (Battle in the Ice) to be in S5, even though it is WoW material. They've pretty much set it up already with Theon as Reek, Yara going after him, Davos leaving to go win Lords for Stannis (Manderly), and Stannis on his way to the wall.

[Hagen of Tronje]

According to reports from early screenings

Spoiler

Polliver will be killed in a fashion similar to Raffs final moments in the new TWOW chapter.

So, apparently D&D are using TWOW material for season 4, albeit indirectly.

[AnotherCrannogman]

This sounds right but I still hate it. I still have hope that the 6th book comes out this summer and last book beats the show by a few months.

[Animist]

I'm trying to figure out what exactly is the point of releasing so many sample chapters of TWoW. I get having one at the end of the previous paperback and maybe one more on your website to tease something. But I think at this point, we've got what, like 5 that have been released or will shortly be released?

I don't really want to read the book this way and I don't know why releasing a sample chapter every 6 months is thought to be a good marketing strategy. The people who want to continue to read the books were on boards sample chapters or no sample chapters.

This is kind of like chinese water torture and it also makes some of the early experience of reading the book when it finally does come out a bit of a slog.

Ditto. I only read the sample chapter at the end of DWD paperback. Maybe it's to show us he is actually still working on the book? hehe

[FalseKnight]

Ditto. I only read the sample chapter at the end of DWD paperback. Maybe it's to show us he is actually still working on the book? hehe

It's a nice thought, but IIRC, GRRM moved all of these chapters out of ADwD. He'll, he expressly told us that he first wrote Mercy's chapter 10 years ago. I don't mean to say that hasn't revised things, but he hasn't released any truly new TWoW content.

[Guest Thorrand]

Robert Jordan lost control of his story because he loved that world and wanted to expand on it, to the detriment of the plot for the most part. The counter part of that love was that he was putting out material consistently. The idea that Martin has lost the passion (from me at least) is because he is producing less and it's mostly world building. I don't blame his side projects for the delay, I blame him losing control of the story and not really knowing how to regain that. As for it being his magnum opus, I'd have to disagree with that point as well.

If it was the culmination of his lifes work and his passion, there would be more results. Selling the rights to his story before it was finished doesn't make sense for anything but profit. I don't begrudge anyone making money, but his actions for the material shows a certain lack of caring as well as his lack of progress knowing he should keep ahead of it. The books have always ended on an uncertain note, but aDwD ends on so many cliffhangers, it's hard not to think he's back working on beauty and the beast for television. Now it feels he is creating something that will adapt well rather than the story he was beginning to tell. I think the tv show has more of an influence than people are willing to admit.

I truly wish at this point I never read any of the books. Where it was going has been so butchered at this point I feel I'll never get the actual ending it was building towards, or the journey along the way. Winter is coming indeed. I hope D+D finish it in a satisfactory manner as that is the only ending I will see for this series.

[Bolivar]

^ I would call that an overly harsh condemnation except for you pointing out that his writing has become so much about world building whereas when the series started it was so heavily character-driven.

The experience was diluted by an explosion of unnecessary characters and I wish it had just stayed with the cohesive handful that captivated us. I think that evidences the bigger problem than a lack of enthusiasm: the stumbling he made in transitioning into the second third of the overall story has broken the writing process.

[AnotherCrannogman]

But hopefully a tens to hundreds of million dollar payday will drive completion. If he gets the story out before the show this is Harry Potter huge, but if not he will have left A LOT of money on the table.