George R.R. Martin Dragged by Witcher Author Over Winds of Winter Delay

Speaking at the Opole Book Festival, Sapkowski was asked (again) whether he plans to write more Witcher books. His response started off straightforward — and then took a turn:

"If anyone in the audience asks that kind of question, I'll tell you right now: I will write something else. Relax. No need to fear.

And unlike George R. R. Martin, whom, by the way, I know personally, when I say I'll write something, I will."

That's a direct shot — unprompted, no less — at Martin's now-infamous 13-year delay on The Winds of Winter, the still-unfinished sixth entry in A Song of Ice and Fire. Meanwhile, Sapkowski wrapped up his main Witcher saga all the way back in 1999, and the Netflix series will end with a complete source material arc.

Martin, of course, has acknowledged the delay before. He's called Winds "a big mother of a book" and "the curse of my life." He's also juggling multiple other projects, including the HBO spinoff A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, which is set to premiere in 2025.

Still, Sapkowski did backpedal — just slightly — and offered some sympathy for the delay:

"Listen, just between us, I totally understand him.

If someone had pulled a stunt like that on me — filming a series based on my books and then getting ahead of what I intended to write — I'd also be wondering whether there's any point in writing anymore. If it's already been done, right? Makes no sense...

It's nice when they adapt your work, that's the author's bloody right. But to adapt what doesn't exist yet? To extrapolate like that? That's just indecent."

Martin still hasn't given a release date for Winds of Winter, and fans aren't holding their breath. Meanwhile, other fantasy authors — even the ones who understand the struggle — are clearly just as frustrated as the readers.