GRRM Would Have Finished Winds of Winter Already if Not for These Side Projects

It's been exactly twelve years since the release of George R. R. Martin's last novel in the Song of Ice and Fire series, A Dance with Dragons. Debuting alongside HBO's Game of Thrones, which is based on the saga, it was supposed to have been followed by two more volumes: The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring.

However, the author has evidently been preoccupied with other projects, including the aforementioned HBO TV series, whose narrative went beyond the scope of his novels, its prequel, and numerous other books, and so far has never got around to finishing the next book in the original series. Here are all of George R.R. Martin's side projects that have seemingly distracted him from completing The Winds of Winter.

1. Wild Cards

Originating in 1986, this book series has been written by a variety of authors, including Martin, who has also served as the series' editor since its inception. Since 2011, he has been editing the Wild Cards series without contributing additional content to it.

2. Editorship

Martin's been involved in other projects as an editor. He's edited quite a few titles in his lifetime. Since 2011, he's been involved in the editorial capacity in the publication of five major titles, including Old Mars, Rogues, and Old Venus.

3. Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No! and other Acting Endeavours

George R.R. Martin has been involved in television projects since the early 1980s – primarily as a writer. However, he's also had a few cameo roles over the years. He appeared in the aforementioned movie and on Syfy's show, Z Nation, in 2015.

4. Night of the Cooters

Reportedly, Martin also served as an executive producer for this short sci-fi western film based on Howard Waldrop's 1987 novel. While it's a relatively obscure project, the film won an award at the LA Shorts Festival.

5. Elden Ring

This 2022 FromSoftware game was developed in collaboration with the master of epic fantasy. George R.R. Martin created the game world's mythology and lore, as well as its historical background.

Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon, whose production George R.R. Martin was heavily involved in, also distracted him from writing The Winds of Winter. Back in 2018, he wrote Fire & Blood, the book House of the Dragon is based on. He also took part in the production of video games based on GoT, as well as the design and publication of various maps and guides to his fictional world. World-building is an extremely time-consuming process.

We can only hope he makes time to finish The Winds of Winter soon.