The first season of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is off to a great start. George R.R. Martin’s Tales of Dunk and Egg novellas have, thankfully, received a faithful adaptation courtesy of showrunner and lead writer Ira Parker. Unlike the spectacle of dragons, armies, and larger-than-life storytelling in Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms focuses on a smaller cast in a smaller location.
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Martin mentioned a writing summit that took place to figure out the series’ length and structure, and how future seasons would be adapted.
“I bring the showrunner together with four or five writers that I know — some are TV writers, some are fantasy novelists — who really know the world and we assemble for a week,” he says.
Parker chimed in by calling the summit “one of the most fun, creative weeks I’ve ever had in my whole career."
Speaking about the writing process, Parker added that “George was there every step of the way. He’s been lovely. I think of him as a friend now.”
Martin being so involved in the show is good news for future seasons of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, but the same can’t be said for House of the Dragon. Martin himself voiced very public frustration with how season 2 turned out under showrunner Ryan Condal, especially with creative choices that drifted away from his book, Fire and Blood.
Back in September 2024, Martin put out a now-deleted blog post criticizing some narrative decisions and omissions, like cutting key characters and changing other storylines, and later described his working relationship with Condal as “abysmal” in the same THR interview. He also warned of more changes to come in Season 3 of the show, which will premiere later this summer.
Martin also touched on a few other topics, like the highly anticipated and eternally delayed The Winds of Winter, and the numerous writing challenges he's been facing over the years that have prevented its completion.
What’s next in store for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms?
Based on the Tales of Dunk and Egg (three novellas published between 1998 and 2010), the story of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms takes place roughly 90 years before A Song of Ice and Fire and about 80 years after House of the Dragon. The first season adapts the first book, and the upcoming seasons will do the same.
In the interview, Parker also revealed that Martin had shared about a dozen unpublished stories (most of them being detailed concepts, outlines, and notes) from the world of Dunk and Egg, so the show could easily adapt them without running out of source material and avoid the issues that plagued those last few seasons of Game of Thrones.
Season 2 is already in the works for a summer 2027 release, and from what Parker says, it’s shaping up to remain a character-first journey with the same six-episode structure, and a similar runtime for each episode.
The showrunners are aiming for an annual release, with season 3 expected to drop in 2028.