Why I Hope George R. R. Martin Never Finishes A Song of Ice and Fire
If there’s one thing I thought would make 2020 better, it was the hope that George R.R. Martin, one of the most famous authors of the twenty-first century, would bestow upon us his gift of immersing us in his mystical universe of Westeros, replete with everything that we love about his unique blend of fantasy and realism - gods, monsters, queens, castles, heroes. Yet the clock struck twelve on January first of 2021, and yet another year without a satisfying conclusion for his desperately-waiting fans had passed us by.
If you’re like me you’ve been eagerly awaiting the sixth novel of George’s A Song of Ice and Fire series, The Winds of Winter, for longer than most of us have had to wait for a sequel maybe in our whole lives – the last book in the series, A Dance With Dragons, came out in 2011, a whole decade ago.
In a time where TV shows are released round the clock and in full seasons for immediate binge watching, it feels oddly comforting to be reminded that art takes time, and you can’t rush creative inspiration. For any writers and artists out there, maybe it’s a sign to take a leaf of out George’s unfinished manuscript, and in the wise words of a bearded tree from another very famous fantasy series, don’t be hasty.
As Martin says on his blog, “I write a chapter at a time, a page at a time, a sentence at a time, a word at a time. It is the only way. And sometimes I rewrite.”
I think it’s important for us to remember that the rapid, seemingly unstoppable velocity of capitalism can be impeded every now and then – by a trade boat, by a few Redditors, or simply by an unfinished novel. In a society that promotes the instantaneous satisfaction of all desires and impulses, I love to see a spanner in the works, something that shows all of us hopeless worker bees that the relentlessly productive machinery of capitalism is not infallible.
George R.R. Martin has been hounded for years by journalists, publishers, fans – people who supposedly love and admire his work – and has made clear the heavy toll of this relentless demand on his mental health. On his blog, he’s also written about the impact of COVID-19 on him personally, with the losses of loved ones impacting his work as well.
Not to mention, Martin has been writing his whole life, and this series is just one of his many creative projects. For those desperate for more from Westeros, he’s written a pseudo-historical compendium Fire and Blood (2018), and a prequel short story collection A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (2015), which explores one of Brienne of Tarth’s distant relatives. And the series itself, A Song of Ice and Fire, is massive enough to be read over and over and still feel fresh – I guarantee that on every re-read, I discover some character or subplot or scene I overlooked the first time around. Also, check out his sci-fi stuff, especially Nightflyers and other short stories.
The man is seventy-two years old, and he might never finish the A Song of Ice and Fire series. And that’s OK with me. His contributions to the literary world have been more than prolific enough for just one person in just one lifetime.
While my 2020 self might have thought that having The Winds of Winter in my hands would make the year better, my 2021 self has different ideas – that in these times, not having the book can be just as much of a gift.