George R.R. Martin’s popular fantasy series, A Song of Ice and Fire (often called Game of Thrones), has gained a worldwide following since the first book was published in 1996. The series became even more famous with the successful HBO TV show. The fifth book was released in 2011, soon after the first season of the show finished airing. However, the TV series eventually moved ahead of the books, even though Martin originally planned to write two more books – The Winds of Winter (Book 6) and A Dream of Spring (Book 7) – to finish the story.
Now that Game of Thrones has finished, fans are still waiting for George R.R. Martin to release the next book, The Winds of Winter. It’s been 14 years since the last installment, A Dance with Dragons, and many are eager to see how the story continues. Here’s a detailed look at the long-awaited sixth book in the Game of Thrones series.
A Condensed History of George R.R. Martin’s Comments on ‘The Winds of Winter’
HBO
I remember reading an interview with George R.R. Martin in Entertainment Weekly not long after A Dance with Dragons came out – it was around July 22, 2011. Everyone was, of course, asking about The Winds of Winter, but he wasn’t giving much away! He basically said he’d gotten in trouble before for saying too much, so he wasn’t going to announce a release date. EW did mention he’d made some progress and thought he might even have a finished draft by January 2012, which gave us all a little hope!
On April 3, 2015, George R.R. Martin discussed The Winds of Winter with Entertainment Weekly. He hoped to have the book published before Season 6 of Game of Thrones began airing on April 24, 2016. Up until that point, each season of the show had generally covered one book in the series.
For several years, Martin used his blog to share updates on his writing, including when things weren’t going as planned. In a blog comment on January 10, 2017, he said he was making progress and hoped to finish the book that year. Then, on June 23, 2020, Esquire magazine analyzed a blog post that Martin had removed, revealing his comments about The Winds of Winter.
Being stuck at home has at least allowed me to make good progress on writing. I’m working on The Winds of Winter for many hours each day and completing chapters regularly – I finished one yesterday, another a few days before that, and another the week before. However, it’s important to remember that this is a massive book, and there’s still a lot of work left to do, so it won’t be finished or released anytime soon.
On May 28, 2025, George R.R. Martin addressed persistent fan questions about the sixth book in his series in a blog post. He began by sharing his excitement about an upcoming adaptation of a Howard Waldrop novella called A Dozen Tough Jobs, which he is producing. He then shifted gears, directly addressing those eager for news about The Winds of Winter:
I understand many of you will be upset by this, especially if you’re only interested in updates about Westeros or The Winds of Winter. Some of you may have lost hope for the books, or for me as an author. Honestly, I doubt I’ll ever finish The Winds of Winter, and even if I did, I’m not confident I could complete A Dream of Spring to a satisfactory level. I’ve even considered letting another writer take over. The truth is, I’m getting older and losing interest. I stopped being passionate about A Song of Ice and Fire a long time ago, and I’ve lost the desire to write. I mostly just spend my time and money, and while I do still edit the Wild Cards books, I know many of you don’t enjoy those either.
I realize you might not like anything else I’ve written – not the award-winning stories, or stories like ‘A Song for Lya’ and Dying of the Light, or even the anthologies I worked on with Gardner Dozois. I understand that you’re only interested in Winds of Winter. You’ve made that very clear.
What Martin Has Worked on in the 14-Year Interim Since ‘A Dance With Dragons’
HBO
Since finishing A Dance with Dragons, George R.R. Martin has remained very active, continuing to write and edit stories set in Westeros, and overseeing the HBO television adaptations of his work. He published Fire & Blood in November 2018, a detailed history of House Targaryen that served as the basis for the HBO series House of the Dragon, which premiered on August 21, 2022. Martin is an executive producer on the show. In 2024, he voiced his concerns about some of the creative decisions made in Season 2, but he’s hopeful that Season 3 will address those issues.
George R.R. Martin wrote three short novels set in the world of Game of Thrones before the main story began: The Princess and the Queen (2013), The Rogue Prince (2014), and The Sons of the Dragon (2017). Details from The Princess and the Queen and The Rogue Prince were later incorporated into his book, Fire & Blood.
Martin created a companion book to his A Song of Ice and Fire series called The World of Ice & Fire, released on October 28, 2014. He worked with Elio Garcia and Linda Antonsson on this project, which explores the history and legends of Westeros and expands on the world of Essos, including its Free Cities.
In addition to his work on Game of Thrones, George R.R. Martin has been involved in several other projects. He executive produced Nightflyers, a science fiction series based on his 1981 story. He’s also been co-editing the Wild Cards shared-world series since 1987, with the most recent novel, House Rules, released this February. Furthermore, Martin is an executive producer on the AMC thriller Dark Winds, which stars Zahn McClarnon.
Looking ahead, George R.R. Martin is an executive producer on A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, a Game of Thrones prequel. The first season, consisting of six episodes, will premiere on January 15, 2026, and is based on Martin’s 1998 novella, The Hedge Knight – the first of three stories in the Tales of Dunk and Egg collection. Future seasons will adapt the remaining two novellas in the series: The Sworn Sword (2003) and The Mystery Knight (2010).
What We Know About the Plot of ‘The Winds of Winter’
HBO
The fourth and fifth books, A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons, end with several storylines unfinished. Notably, characters from Houses Martell and Greyjoy—like Arianne Martell and Victarion and Aeron Greyjoy—have unresolved arcs. Arya Stark will keep training with the Faceless Men in Braavos, now known as Mercy. The story will also venture further north than before, with increased attention on the Others, also called the White Walkers. This development will likely lead to a major battle as the realm prepares to defend itself against these powerful ice creatures beyond the Wall.
There’s speculation that Tyrion Lannister might finally encounter Daenerys Targaryen in Meereen. Another storyline involves a character known as the Griff, along with a young man claiming to be Aegon Targaryen – Rhaegar Targaryen and Elia Martell’s supposedly deceased son. This young man, along with the Griff, is planning to take Storm’s End as a first step towards claiming the Iron Throne. Because he believes he’s the rightful king, this could create conflict with Daenerys. Given that we haven’t heard about them since the previous book, A Dance with Dragons, it’s likely they’ll reappear in the next installment, The Winds of Winter.
George R.R. Martin hasn’t revealed much about what happens to Jon Snow after the shocking events at the end of the fifth book, and it’s unclear if we’ll see the story from his perspective in the next one. However, given how important Jon Snow is to the overall plot, he’s likely to play a role. Meanwhile, Stannis Baratheon is still heading towards Winterfell, and Asha Greyjoy (known as Yara in the Game of Thrones TV series) finds out her brother Theon is being tortured by Ramsay Bolton. After Stannis captures Theon, Asha offers to pay a ransom to secure his release.
In A Dance with Dragons, Brienne of Tarth and Jaime Lannister team up to rescue Sansa Stark from the Hound. Brienne is determined to fulfill her promise to the late Catelyn Stark. George R.R. Martin might continue their storyline in The Winds of Winter, or he could delay it until A Dream of Spring. He often leaves characters out of one book to build suspense and bring them back later.
POV Character Chapters We Can Expect
HBO
Martin has revealed which characters will have their own chapters told from their perspectives in The Winds of Winter.
- Arya Stark
- Sansa Stark
- Arianne Martell
- Areo Hotah
- Asha Greyjoy
- Victarion Greyjoy
- Aeron Greyjoy
- Theon Greyjoy
- Tyrion Lannister
- Cersei Lannister
- Barristan Selmy
Besides the main characters we already know, George R.R. Martin confirmed that Bran Stark will appear in the next novel. He originally planned to include chapters told from the perspectives of Aeron, Arianne, Arya, and Sansa in A Dance with Dragons, but those chapters were cut and are likely to be added to The Winds of Winter. At a book fair in 2016, Martin suggested that Melisandre might play a larger role in the sixth or seventh books. He also indicated that The Winds of Winter will be a grim installment, with things becoming increasingly difficult for many characters.
Sample Chapters That Are Already Available To Read
HBO
I’ve been following the updates on Martin’s website, and right now there’s just one preview chapter available – it’s from Arianne Martell’s point of view, chapter two to be exact. It’s really interesting because her council is trying to talk her out of going to Storm’s End, even though her father, Doran, wants her to find out if those claiming to be Aegon Targaryen and Young Griff are legitimate. Everyone around her is suspicious of them and the mercenaries they’re hanging around with – the Golden Company. But, news is, they’ve actually taken Storm’s End, so Arianne feels she has to do what her father asked and investigate.
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The book The World of Ice & Fire includes preview chapters from the upcoming novel The Winds of Winter. These chapters focus on the perspectives of Theon, Tyrion, Arya (under the name Mercy), Barristan, and Arianne. While some of these chapters were initially published on George R.R. Martin’s website, they have since been moved. Fans can find a compilation of available online excerpts, including a full transcript of a reading for Aeron’s chapter and a partial transcript for Victarion’s. A Wiki of Ice and Fire also offers summaries of these sample chapters.
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2025-12-24 17:07