Game of Thrones fans have been waiting over 15 years since the 76-year-old writer announced he has begun writing the first few chapters of the book.
If you’ve ever been a fan of anything that is ongoing or still unfinished, then you probably know that patience is a virtue. I’ve been there, done that, and will certainly repeat the cycle in the near future, given my predilection for falling in love with stories that seem to go on forever.
I experienced it with Harry Potter, as I waited with bated breath for each book to launch from The Prisoner of Azkaban to The Deathly Hallows. I experienced it with every Star Wars series I fell in love with (which is all of them). It was, however, Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy that tested my mettle. I recall how agonizing the one-year wait was in between The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers, and then another year of waiting again for The Return of the King. It was all worth it, though, even if I already knew from the books how the story would end.
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Waiting for something you know fully well will come out and will be concluded in the future can be agonizing. Waiting for something you’re not quite sure will ever happen is an altogether different breed of pain for sure. Something I wish I would never have to go through, but something fans of the Game of Thrones books have to contend with.
To be clear, I was (still am, actually) a fan of the Game of Thrones series, and sat through the much reviled last two seasons and finished it until the bitter end. I haven’t, however, read a single sentence from the novels.
Still, I can’t help but feel terrible for fans of the books who have been waiting for over 15 years for author George R.R. Martin to release The Winds of Winter, the sixth installment in the series.
The million-dollar question is, will Martin ever get around to finishing the book?
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What’s the latest?
For a bit of context, it has been almost 14 torturous years since A Dance with Dragons, the last book in the Song of Ice and Fire series, was released. Fans aren’t hallucinating when they say there is a forthcoming book (even two books), as Martin mentioned back in 2010 that he has started writing the first few chapters of The Winds of Winter. Fast forward to 2025 and fans have yet to hear a peep from the American author if he has already finished at least a first draft. To make matters worse, and perhaps in what could be construed as the final nail in the coffin, Martin just announced a new project.
Last May 21, Hollywood Reported exclusively revealed that Lion Forge Entertainment is collaborating with the 76-year-old writer on a planned adult animated feature adaptation of Howard Waldrop’s novella A Dozen Tough Jobs. Set in 1920s sharecropping Mississippi, it is a retelling of the Greek myth of the twelve labors of Hercules. Martin will serve as one of the film’s producers.
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What now, fans?
With this bombshell of a news, fans might have to start going through the process of grief, as it’s safe to assume the book is doomed to eternal limbo. Martin knows full well how heartbroken fans are—with some downright furious—at the delay. As recently as December 2024, he made assurances that the now near-hallucinatory sixth book remains a priority, while also admitting he is unsure how it has taken him so long to finish the book. He even mentioned that a lot of fans are suggesting he will never live to finish the series and are already writing his obituary.
In the absence of Martin’s own ending, the television adaptation was forced to devise its own ending via the highly controversial Game of Thrones finale that saw Bran Stark ascend the Iron Throne. Many fans, especially those who loved the books, were outraged at the “serious decline in the show’s storytelling,” yours truly being one of them viewers.
Not all hope is lost, however. If the purported last two books will be released, then we can probably expect an alternate ending to one of HBO’s biggest hits. After all, Warner Bros. has revealed its interest in developing a Game of Thrones movie. Fans can also find comfort in knowing that some projects are likewise taking forever to see the light of day, like The Blade MCU movie. Since the film was announced at the San Diego Comic-Con in 2019, it has been delayed and rewritten multiple times and there have been few major updates that suggest the Mahershala Ali headliner will be released in the foreseeable future. In fact, recent reports say it is currently on pause.
For now, I guess, Game of Thrones fans have to accept that winter is most likely here to stay and freeze The Winds of Winter project.
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