George R.R. Martin: “Don’t be too impatient, it’s only been 12 years since the last one”

Everyone knows that George R.R. Martin has been working on The Winds of Winter, the sixth novel in his Song of Ice and Fire series, for a very long time, so long that HBO’s adaptation Game of Thrones ran out of source material to adapt and more or less forged its own path in the last few seasons. Some fans are so cheesed off by the wait that they get irritated whenever Martin gives an interview or makes a public appearance, reasoning that this is time he’s not spending writing the book.

I personally don’t truck with that; in fact, seeing Martin give interviews is kind of encouraging, because it indicates to me that he’s confident enough about his progress that he’s willing to take a minute to do something fun. And he does indeed seem in good spirits in a recent sitdown with YouTuber Dominic Noble, even making light about the long wait for Winds: “Don’t be too impatient, it’s only been 12 years since the last one,” he quipped. “I am working on it when I’m not doing podcasts and interviews.”

Gotta love a guy who’s self-aware. And just to head off anyone who may be upset by this, Martin gave the interview at Beastly Books, the bookstore he owns in his hometown of Santa Fe, so it’s not like he had to travel far.

George R.R. Martin discusses his “favorite book”: Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny

The interview itself is mostly about Nine Princes in Amber, a fantasy book by author Roger Zelazny, whom Martin knew personally. Nine Princes is the first book in Zelazny’s Chronicles of Amber series, which is currently being adapted for TV by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman and talk show host/fantasy superfan Stephen Colbert.

Watch the interview below, and then we’ll hit a few highlights:

• Martin thinks that Lord of Light is Roger Zelazny’s masterpiece, so if you’re interested but don’t want to dive into a 10-book series, consider that one.
• Martin gave Colbert some advice on adapting Nine Princes in Amber, which actually includes a number of princesses as well. “I always favor faithful adaptations. Generally speaking, I don’t like changes. If you’re taking on a classic, you should reflect what the classic is,” he said. “But I think you’re gonna have to change the title to include the girls too…15 Siblings in Amber.”
• At one point, the talk shifted to who might play lead character Corwin on TV, which led to Martin reminiscing about how Jason Momoa and Pedro Pascal — two actors who got their big breaks on Game of Thrones — “both became mega-stars…They’re both very good.”

Fun stuff. As for Dominic Noble, if you like fantasy and sci-fi books — or just books in general — I recommend checking out his channel. He does these fun videos where he compares books to their movie and TV adaptations…and apparently also sometimes he sits down with the most famous authors working today. Guy does it all.

To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.

Get HBO, Starz, Showtime and MORE for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels