Long before Game of Thrones became a global phenomenon, author George R.R. Martin kept up an active blog (endearingly called his Not A Blog) where he interacted with fans, keeping them in the loop on all the goings on with his life and writing. Martin has been steady with his posts for decades, but for one reason or other, he's gone radio silent for the year of 2026. That changed today when Martin returned to the Not A Blog for his first post in more than half a year.
Before you get too excited, no this post isn't announcing something crazy like The Winds of Winter being finished. But it does give an idea of why Martin's been absent so long — as well as a small check-in with his current favorite Westeros series, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.
"Remember me?" Martin joked. "It’s been a while, I know. My last blog post went up here on February 19. The posts that came after were made by my mighty minions. I am lucky enough to have a great staff of assistants… though even with their help, I kept falling further and further behind."
As for where Martin has been all this time, he didn't go too deep into the details. But it sounds like it's been a year filled with ups and downs, which makes the time away from the blog incredibly understandable.
"This year has been… stressful, to say the least," he wrote. "So much has been happening, it’s been overwhelming. Some great things, exciting things. Dreams coming true. But there have been nightmares too. I have lost friends. Battled sadness and depression. The worst may be yet to come. I turned seventy-seven last September, and I tell you, getting old is no fun. But there have been amazing times as well."
"I suppose that’s just life. Of course, I knew that. If you’ve read my stories, you know that," he added.
Having read quite a few of Martin's stories, yes, the bittersweet ups and downs and life are very much a part of them, which obviously he could only write about as well as he does if he knew. Still, it's a shame to hear that he's been going through a difficult stretch, and I'm a little anxious about his words that "the worst may be yet to come." It brings to mind some of his other blog posts in recent years where he discussed the loss of some of his close friend and colleagues like Howard Waldrop. I hope that whatever's weighing on Martin, the load eases sooner rather than later.
George R.R. Martin hopes to attend the Emmys in support of AKOTSK
The blog post wasn't only personal news, however. Martin also took a moment to hype up A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, which was nominated for nine Emmy awards this year including Best Drama. The first season of the new HBO series adapted Martin's novella "The Hedge Knight" to perfection, and he's been effusive with his praise for it in the past. He called the Emmy recognition for the series a "highlight" of his year.
Martin hopes to attend the awards event at the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles on September 14, but it "depends on a lot of things." Presumably writing, health, and the many other demands on his time are all a part of that equation.
"I am proud of our team, and hope we take home a few of the statues, but I will confess that I was hoping we’d get a few of the acting nominations as well. But there’s always next year," he wrote, and I can only agree. It was a disappointment that neither Peter Claffey (Dunk) nor Dexter Sol Ansell (Egg) got a nod for their outstanding portrayals of the knight and squire at the heart of Martin's latest series.
Fortunately, as Martin says, there's always another shot for Claffey and Ansell next year...because A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a yearly show, unlike so many other prestige fantasy genres. See, it comes with perks to not leave audiences hanging for multiple years between seasons, like having more frequent chances at awards!
With how busy a year it's been in Westeros, there's undoubtedly plenty more that Martin wants to post about if he has time; though he said he expects future posts to be "short and rushed," so I wouldn't expect any lengthy diatribes in the near future. But with the opening of the Game of Thrones: The Mad King stage play, to the new Folio Society edition of A Game of Thrones and the 30th anniversary of that iconic first book that started A Song of Ice and Fire, there are no shortage of topics Martin could weigh in if he so chooses. Of course, there's also House of the Dragon season 3...but considering Martin's ongoing rift with showrunner Ryan Condal, I'm not banking on any major updates on that front from the author this year.
For now, it's just great to hear from George R.R. Martin again on the Not A Blog. Like many fans, I've missed his regular updates. Here's hoping the rest of 2026 is kind to him, and we hear more about what he's been up to in the coming months.
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