Before leaving for the Chicago convention, GRRM left a message on his LJ about his writing progress in the post script(s):
(P.S. Had a good day writing today. Half the day on the book, half the day on the script. That’s something I NEVER do. But today everything seemed to click. Taxes are done too).
((Need more days like today)).
(((Soon))).
Hear Me Roar: Despite announcing earlier that he plans to be done with the book before he starts on the script, George is now working on both projects simultaneously. Here’s to good progress on all fronts, what more can I say. We remain hopeful.
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74 Comments
first. good news too
Phil PritchardQuote Reply
by the way…the script he’s writting should be ready when?
JehphgQuote Reply
Well they start filming in late June, but since he's writing episode 8 he probably has a few extra months. So maybe Sept/Oct? I would say no later than Oct.
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
This is the way I thought it would be done as well. However, unless McCarthy is directing the whole first season (unlikely) some episodes will have different directors. Which means they will have to film episode-by-episode or close to it.
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
i didn’t have any idea that it would take that long, thanks wic!
JehphgQuote Reply
What do you think "(((Soon)))." means?
Hopefully he's sitting on some major news that we'll get soon :) Dance finished? Not likely… Dany recast? Hopefully not, I liked Tamzin in Tudors s4, but I agree that it's likely she's out :(
@AshandereiQuote Reply
I wonder if George will be teasing or hinting at any casting announcements during his appearance? Remember last year he teased on his blog that he knew some stuff and later revealed that Jaime and Theon had been cast during his Worldcon appearance, though he couldn't say who the actors were.
However, he didn't post any teasing comments on his blog which makes me wonder if there is no news to share. Or maybe he's just been told by HBO to keep casting news close to the vest this time around? I'm guessing it is the latter as I have to believe that at least a handful of roles have been cast by now and HBO is just waiting for the right time to announce them.
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
It seems pretty clear to me that he is just continuing his train of thought from the previous sentence. He "needs more days like today. Soon."
Generally when George teases something, it's pretty obvious it's a tease.
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
Martin is a significant guest at that convention. The whole Friday night is more or less dedicated to him (and another author), so if there's going to be news… my guess is that is when it would break. I have some links to the info here:http://wolfandrain.blogspot.com/2010/03/george-rr…
Bill WolfeQuote Reply
I love how it's ok for GRRM to play his little games with things like "(((Soon)))", but then when he inevitably doesn't deliver, if I grumble, somehow I'm a self centered prick and "GRRM isn't my bitch". If you don't want disappointed fans, then quit getting their hopes up with your little word games.
He better be for real this time, cause this crap is getting old.
*END RANT*
(I'm copying this from the other thread, as it is more appropriate here. Sorry for the double post.)
Gregory KeltonQuote Reply
If he's working on the script right now, I expect they want it before filming on the series begins. They probably need to budget the script, to determine everything they will need for it, how many actors of every different pay scale, and how many days for each type of actor, how many sets to be built and for how many days of use each, any other locations that need rented and for how many days, how many crew of various types, and how many days for each. They will probably require re-writes of the script based on any thoughts from the producers and maybe any notes provided from HBO, and also to address any budget concerns.
JackSparrowQuote Reply
(Well I will copy my reply over to here than, as I think more people will see it here and hopefully this will allow them to not be getting their hopes up like others have)
I don't think the (((Soon))) is a clue that he will be finishing the book soon. It was just a continuation of his previous thought. It could be alternately read as "need to have more days like today soon." Basically him hoping that the next few weeks will be very productive writing wise.
I agree that George's constant missing of self-imposed deadlines is getting tiresome. But sometimes I think the fans set themselves up for disappointment when they read waaaay too much into some of the things he says or writes.
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
Notice that the brackets on each thought were +1 to the previous statement, which (I think) served to differenciate them a bit… So one could interpret his three sentences like this:
First of all, he doesn't write screenplays and books simultaniously but this time it clicked (maybe his writing in Dance involves a character in the script so he doesn't need to 'switch' that much, as it were?)
He needs more days like that (reaffirming that work went extremely well that day…)
(Extremely well, you say? When will it be finished?) Soon.
mwah-hah! Great news.
2222222Quote Reply
Kelton:
It’s ok because he’s a brilliant author and you’re just some common fool with a facebook account…we all weep for your sense of injustice, but the world is indeed a cruel place.
GarvinQuote Reply
Yeah I am not getting excited about the “soon” comment.
George has made little comments before that people took the wrong way. I think its just like WIC said, he wants more writing days like that, and soon.
The book will be out when its out, and no one likes to talk about the progress more than George, which leads me to believe not a ton has happened of late. I think he goes silent when things aren’t going well.
Or maybe he just has only the little things left on it. I can hope at least.
ECUdanQuote Reply
Yeah, me too.
It would be really odd, if they had not cast anybody by now.
George, obviously can not talk about it.
@The_Rabbit01Quote Reply
Well I do not know about that. I can see them trying to shoot most moroccan scenes at the same time and then switching to other locations for logistical reasons.
So from that point of view it would be nice to have all the episodes written at one point and then got to a location to do the shooting as opposed to having to return to all locations all the time.
TremereQuote Reply
I am. Dance has to come out at some point right? Might as well be 'soon'.
silveriusQuote Reply
I certainly know that feeling, those days are AWESOME, I sure hope you have more of them too George!!
StuQuote Reply
Progress is good, very good, but the best thing at all is that George seems really motivated! I really wish him many more days like this :)
MonsterfurbyQuote Reply
I don't think GRRM meant anything by the "(((Soon)))". Seems to me he was just in a good mood when he made that post; I'm going to chalk those extra brackets up to whimsy and leave it at that.
In any case, it is nice to see that he's enjoying the writing process. I'm glad things are going well :)
KangaQuote Reply
So it´s GRRMs fault that some people read WAY to much into his posts? Sorry, but i really don´t think so…
CookieQuote Reply
I don't foresee much from GRRM in the way of casting news or anything on the series – did anyone else notice that once the greenlight was announced, all online networking seemed to stop? Sophie Turner's Youtube and twitter accounts disappeared, no random posts, etc. about progress, not much from Benioff and Weiss?? HBO is putting out some radio silence until this gets closer to fruition I think.
JacksonQuote Reply
Just for the record, Sophie's Twitter account is still active. Her Youtube account is gone but it was deleted prior to the green light announcement (I suspect that had more to do with her parents than HBO).
But yes, things have been more quiet. I suspect that is because HBO is controlling the PR for the show a little more tightly than before. Since it was just a pilot up until a month ago, HBO wasn't in a position to openly promote the show. In fact, I suspect that HBO allowed (maybe even encouraged) the hints from George and the posts from David & Dan at Westeros as it was a way for them to get publicity for the show without being directly responsible. Now of course, they will want to control all aspects of PR so they may have instructed GRRM, David and Dan to lay low for now.
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
Hopefully working on the script will help him cut through the knots in the book. Sometimes you just need to look at something from a different direction and this may be it.
I wish I could go to C2E2.
Joe KingsmillQuote Reply
Misread? I'm sorry but I have to completely disagree. Seeing (((Soon))) is not misreading, that is a cryptic line that could mean any of many different things. WiC could be right, it could be meant to modify the "I need more days like today" segment. But why write it like that? You can't honestly say that (((Soon))) is not open to misinterpretation.
All I'm saying is that if GRRM doesn't want to piss people off, he should stop with the cute word play stuff when it comes to the topic of writing ADwD. I just think it is ridiculous that GRRM can say this crap that gets peoples hopes up, and then be condescending and "holier than thou" when people dare to be upset by being let down.
Gregory KeltonQuote Reply
Nice.
Gregory KeltonQuote Reply
See what I mean, inevitable let down your on in 5…
Gregory KeltonQuote Reply
I think you're taking all this waaaaaaay too seriously.
PranksterQuote Reply
Frankly this seems like bad news. If he was setting the goal of getting the book done before starting the script, and then he realized that there's an actual deadline for the script that he can't miss, causing him to alter that goal, it suggests he's still a ways away from finishing DWD.
WHICH I AM FINE WITH.
PranksterQuote Reply
Prankster, you take the words right out of my mouth.
Could GRRM be more careful to avoid such confusion? Possibly.
But i still don´t think it´s his fault, that some people chose to blow virtually everything he says way out of proportion.
I mean, come on, he just statet a couple of months ago, that when he finishes ADWD, he will announce it without any teasing or things like that. Keeping that in mind, i fail to see the problem with his last post.
CookieQuote Reply
My comment seems to have disappeared??
I was saying that it's good to hear GRRM sounding so positive about such a productive day… but at the same time, he makes it sound like such productive days are incredibly rare (i.e. "I NEVER do that!") and it's too bad that he's leaving town again for a week! :(
LexQuote Reply
It's DEFINITELY just a continuation of the previous line ("I need more days like today…. and soon") but people are already misunderstanding it. Sadly, GRRM's blog posts are sometimes a little unclear, and often lead to wildly rampant and unfounded speculation.
LexQuote Reply
No, the extra brackets to me seem to be like writing post scripts.
P.S. I need more days like this.
P.P.S. Soon.
It's a continuation of the same thought.
LexQuote Reply
I really can't see how people can misunderstand it, as both conclusions lead to the same point.
"Soon (ADWD will be finished)," – ADWD will be completed in the relatively near future. Given we've waited 4.5 years for it so far, relatively near could still mean a month or two, so it's not 'imminent', certainly.
The other conclusion is:
"I need more days like today soon (because I am close to finishing ADWD and more good days like this will get it done faster)." Although I don't think this is good English: just saying, "I need more days like today," by itself would make more sense this way and parse better.
Since both of these conclusions are supported by GRRM's recent statements that the book is well over 1,300 pages in MS, some or all of the remainder exists as drafts and needs to be finalised, and if it hits 1,500 it will be split and thus the first half could be published quite soon regardless of the other half, then I don't see any huge controversy here.
Yeah, people shouldn't be expecting the completion announcement in Chicago over the weekend or even in the next few weeks, but the end of the tunnel is definitely within sight, and that's been clear for a little while now. If he gets it done before August, the book will be out this year.
Adam WhiteheadQuote Reply
FINISH THAT DAMN BOOK!
stormschmooperQuote Reply
100%!
SteveQuote Reply
(Soon) is DEFINITELY a continuation of the previous sentence. "I need more days like today… soon". People are totally misunderstanding it.
LexQuote Reply
As frustrating as it can be for us to wait, at least news of making progress is positve news. GRRM isn't complaining about the knot today!
Lord Ned's HeadQuote Reply
Anybody in Chicago to report on anything , anything at all, that GRRM might let slip in conversation, speeches, drunk rantings? Anybody there to ply him with booze and plunk his magic twanger?
TPFKA Thoros of MyrQuote Reply
You go George!
The day I have ADWD in my hands….
Every evening after work I will dress up in suit and black tie.
I will pour myself a glass of Chateau Mont-Redon and sit in my favourite black-leather armchair.
I will sit there every evening with the book closed in my lap, stroke its covers and ponder what this evenings reading will bring.
Then with a deep breath I will open the book to where Ive placed the red and white silk bookmark and read slowly and with devotion only a few pages. Five or maybe even ten, but not more.
Then I will close the book and sip on my wine and savour every word I just read. ;)
Im actually glad for the time it has taken. Confident of the quality of the tale GRRM's has spun for my pleasure. A moments escape where he teases me to laugh and perhaps even cry as I gaze int the lives of people Ive come to love.
If the book had come out last year I wouldnt have all this to look forward to. Now I do. :-)
As with a good movie by Scorcese or Oliver Stone, a beautiful woman in my lap or the taste of a good wine upon my tongue GRRM gives me pleasure.
For that I am always grateful.
But besides pleasure my life also has meaning such as work and relationships. Other things where to focus my energy.
I think all of you who complain may be a bit lacking in that area.
You go George!
and thanks WiC!
((Soon))
covenantQuote Reply
Thoros,
I think events on the CON begins Friday night (today).
So if would be some news regarding series or Dance, it is too early for it.
Patience, patience :)
@The_Rabbit01Quote Reply
That is an awesome plan. I was planning to do the same thing once ADWD came out…
2222222Quote Reply
Are people beginning to post for posting's sake and desperate for news on days that news isn't really available?
Whether the Soon… is a cryptic clue or not is irrelevant, it won't get Dance in your hands any quicker arguing on here. We're all fans of George's writing are we not?
Some more news for a slow news day:
In the latest issue of Total Film in the UK, Jamie Campbell Bower (Ser Waymar Royce) is named in the Hotlist for 2010 labelled as 'The New Kid' though GoT isn't mentioned. Nice to have some recognised talent even in a small role.
-Rob the Peach-
Rob the PeachQuote Reply
Sigh. Now he's doing two things at once?
At least ADWD is BIG.
LadyQuote Reply
Only two things? Crikey! Give him more before he finishes something!
Whiney the Poo BarQuote Reply
Well, he's always got editing Fort Freak to take up any spare time he might have.
LadyQuote Reply
More in the sense if anybody is there, from when the con begins, and who will stick to GRRM like a leech to Chett ,and has an uncontrollable urge to post leaks of who will be Best Boy Grip, who will play Dany, or who get any other position of importance on the shoot ,on WiC, at the moment of hearing the news, before or during his/hers happy dance……all while relaxing and enjoying the con to the fullest, of course, I am not one to make demands
TPFKA Thoros of MyrQuote Reply
1. replace Steve Zahn's face with yours.
2. replace Elvis Costello's face with GRRM's.
3. replace all the musicians with costumed geeks n freaks.
everything is relative… to Treme.
SteveQuote Reply
LOVED TREME!
Feel almost flattered…. :D
TPFKA Thoros of MyrQuote Reply
LOL. I like the part about stroking the covers, and drinking wine.
Actually, this reminds me of how I feel when a new Tool album comes out. They operate on the same exact schedule, releasing an album once every five years (a long time, for a rock band!). But the quality is of the highest calibre. I remember with their last album that I only allowed myself to listen to one new track per day! :)
LexQuote Reply
First words form C2E2 event in Chicago.
GRRM said yesterday in Chicago what would be included in episode 8.
Thanks to Lady Narcissa at Westeros.org .
Apparently, lots of questions regarding series and lots of answers too, but we must wait for details.
Waiting, waiting and more waiting…
@The_Rabbit01Quote Reply
So, Roger Ebert didn't like Kick-Ass, mostly because he didn't like seeing an 11-year-old killing people:
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/arti…
I think Arya might be seen differently, as the character is a bit older and Game of Thrones isn't really being played for laughs. Still, I'm positive we'll see something like the above complaint from some quarters.
@sgnpQuote Reply
I don't think it will be the same at all. HBO shows have portrayed violence being performed BY and TO children before. It's disturbing, for sure, but it's supposed to be.
It sounds like this Kick-Ass movie shows one girl slaughtering tons of grown men in an orgy of comic book violence, with no remorse or repercussions at all. That's not how it will be, with Arya.
LexQuote Reply
I think you've outlined the difference pretty well. I'm hoping that's what the take of most critics will be, to *contrast* Hit Girl and Arya, rather than compare them as some sort of trend.
@sgnpQuote Reply
That said, anyone who's seen Kick-Ass and has read Game of Thrones who can offer more insight, even if it's agreement, I'd be really interested to hear about it.
@sgnpQuote Reply
I've seen Kick-Ass, and enjoyed it. "Hit Girl" is an 11 year, who has been trained by her father since she was 5 years old to be a vigilanti. It's incredibly violent and played as such. SPOILER
At the end she nearly takes down room full of guys single handedly" It's kind of like Kill Bill with an 11 year old.
SPOILER
I mean, I understand why it Upsets Ebert, but I thought it was pretty great. It's rediculous. and as lex said, it's pretty much an orgy of violence. (SPOILER And then Mark Strong starts kicking the crap out of her SPOILER)
Hit girl is used for laughs because it's absurd.
I'm sure Arya will get some of that criticism, but not as much. Ayra's actions, compared to the rest of the series, isn't just gratuitous violence.
Phoenix_tornQuote Reply
Also, I'm still voting for Mark Strong for Stannis
Phoenix_tornQuote Reply
Sounds terrible. The last thing I need to see is a grown man beating a young girl.
LexQuote Reply
(GOT SPOILERS: This is one of the big things I think may happen when people see Game of Thrones translated to TV. The horrible things that happen to Dany and the Stark kids seem to get glossed over when people read about them, but when they're actually shown it's going to be hard for people to see them as anything but awful.)
@sgnpQuote Reply
I wouldn't say it was played for laughs, but it was a brutally violent as the rest of the movie. When SPOILER he slams her into a table SPOILER the audienced winced and groaned (at least the one I saw it with) That was the last fight scene of the movie, and the win or lose moment.
Phoenix_tornQuote Reply
(SPOILER As I suspected, then, it was supposed to make the audience uncomfortable, not amused. Sounds like it worked, too. SPOILER)
@sgnpQuote Reply
I didn't see Kick-Ass; I don't plan to since it looks like a stupid movie and Nicholas Cage is in it.
But what you said reminds me of Leon the Professional–romantic fantasy about a twelve year old girl who wants to be an assassin. It was a great movie. It obviously had more feeling and realism than Kick-Ass. It probably was a much better movie. Well, Ebert gave it a 2.5 stars (Kick-Ass got a lonely 1)http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/arti… In this, Ebert also is troubled with the young girl in Leon: "placing a 12-year-old character in the middle of this action… seems to exploit the youth of the girl without really dealing with it."
But Ebert has no trouble with Jodie Foster's character in Taxi Driver… who plays a ten year old prostitute. He gave that movie the full four stars.
Not many people (QT) can pull off Kill Bill, so I doubt Kick-Ass is Kill Bill with an 11 year old. Or even remotely close.
I don't mind orgies, violence, or both together in movies (Perfume comes to mind)… but I think what Ebert is saying is the Kick Ass movie is shit. And Nicholas Cage is in it. He hasn't been in a decent movie in over ten years or so.
SteveQuote Reply
By the way, Ebert gave Kill Bill 4 stars (to both parts).
SteveQuote Reply
I enjoyed "Kick-ass" very much, as the audience in my cinema apparently did. The comparison with Kill Bill I think is spot on: the fights are not played for laughs as much as for thrills, but the violence is so graphically gore and the stunts so over the top, that the final result are tongue-in-cheek.
Now, SPOILERS ALL THE WAY
The duel with Mark Strong is definitively not laughing matter. The audience is tense watching the scene, but not because a 11yo-girl is getting beaten the crap out of her (In fact, she's not; she hits Mark Strong in a ratio of 6:1 or so, she's more skillful and faster, the problem is she's much weaker as well), but because for first time in the film, we think of her as vulnerable. Until that point she was an unstoppable killing machine.
Anyway, I don't think you can't compare Hit Girl with Aria. Aria is a little girl all way through, while once in costume, you don't think of Hit Girl as a kid, more of a pint-sized ninja in steroids.
DennaiQuote Reply
Aww. damn spoilers. Well, now I definitely don't have to watch an eleven year old on ritalin for 1.5 hours.. Thanks :)
SteveQuote Reply
Arya is not some smart ass, potty mouth punk kid…Arya kills because she has to, there in lies the difference.
dizzy34Quote Reply
Yeah, Elbert has problems with a young girl kicking ass all over the place. He had problems too with Gandalf kicking ass because, his words, "he was an old man". Enough said.
Also, he dished "Blade Runner" back in the day, and of course, now he calls it a classic. The stars that Elbert give mean shit to me.
And I woudn't call The Professional a better movie than Kick-Ass. It's like comparing Excalibur with Monty Python and the Holy Grail: similar thematic background, completely different goals.
But I'd have liked better Jean Reno as Big Daddy than Nicholas Cage, I'll give you that.
DennaiQuote Reply
And another thing. I'm not saying that Kick-ass is Kill Bill with a 11-yo. They're completely different movies. What I meant is that in both films the fights, particularly the "me vs an army" fights, have a similar tone.
DennaiQuote Reply
I completely agree with you Dennai
Phoenix_tornQuote Reply
The main question I have isn't whether we can see that difference, I think anyone who's read the books knows that Arya's situation is more "real." It's simply that I know for a fact that *someone* is going to have a problem with Arya killing people, regardless of her motivations. The question is whether that's going to be conservative watchdogs like the AFA or more mainstream critics as well.
@sgnpQuote Reply
(SPOILER Ebert had a quote on twitter:http://twitter.com/ebertchicago/status/1220859607… "Let me get this right. I don't laugh as an 11-year-old girl gets the shit beaten out of her, so that makes me out of touch." I find it hard to believe that the director intended that particular scene to be funny, and Ebert is being hyperbolic at that point. Was Mark Strong kicking the crap out of Hit Girl played for laughs? SPOILER)
@sgnpQuote Reply
I can't wait to see Arya kill people.
LexQuote Reply
Well. Lady Narcisaa at Westeros forum provided some details on Episode 8.
It seems that GRRM was very short, he mentoned only:
Episode 8 will cover:
!!!!SPOILER!!!
- events immediately after Roberts death
- LFs betrayal
- Arya s escape
- and some bits on the Wall.
!!!END OF Spoiler!!!
@The_Rabbit01Quote Reply