George R.R. Martin Confirms 'Winter' Isn't Coming Before Season 6

Winter is not coming anytime soon.

In a lengthy blog post to kick off the new year, author George R.R. Martin confirmed that his new book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series, The Winds of Winter, will not be completed before Season 6 of the HBO show, "Game of Thrones" -- and that the show will spoil the books.

In the post, the author covers a saga so epic it's perhaps only surpassed by his novels. Martin recalls how everyone, including HBO, wanted the book to come out before Season 6 of "GoT" premieres in April, because the show has basically caught up to his source material. Martin said he missed multiple deadlines due to distractions, previous obligations and just not feeling it. The author explained that he was having more bad writing days than good ones. Martin wrote that he's still "months away" from finishing Winds. And that's "if the writing goes well."

"You're disappointed, and you're not alone," he wrote. "My editors and publishers are disappointed, HBO is disappointed, my agents and foreign publishers and translators are disappointed... but no one could possibly be more disappointed than me." 

Even worse, the author confirmed some book spoilers are coming.

"Given where we are, inevitably, there will be certain plot twists and reveals in season six of 'Game of Thrones' that have not yet happened in the books," Martin said. 

Book readers shouldn't totally freak out, though. At this point, the show has diverted so much from the books that a lot of the perceived twists probably won't even happen in the books, Martin said. And many characters who are dead in the show still have significant stories coming in his novels.

But whether you prefer the show's take or the books, "you can still enjoy the hell out of both,"  Martin said.

Ok, so you hear that, Arya? Yeah it's a bummer, but don't do something rash like adding Martin's name to your nightly list. If so, Winter might never come.

 

H/T GRRM

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