Thanks to the grossly misinformed loose lips of Game of Thrones actor Ian McElhinney at a fan convention, rumors ran rampant in recent weeks that claimed OG scribe George R. R. Martin was a jolly, prolific liar — not only had he supposedly finished his final two Ice and Fire books, The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring, but he had actually finished them years ago and was holding off on releasing them until the show’s conclusion. Alas, not so. In a new blog post aptly titled “Idiocy on the Internet,” Martin condemned the claims originated by McElhinney, a.k.a Barristan Selmy, and expressed annoyance that he even had to address them.
“It seems absurd to me that I need to state this. The world is round, the Earth revolves around the sun, water is wet, do I need to say that too? It boggles me that anyone would believe this story, even for an instant,” he wrote. “I will, however, say for the record, no, The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring are not finished. Dream is not even begun; I am not going to start writing volume seven until I finish volume six.” If you still don’t believe Martin, take this logic out for a spin:
Why would I sit for years on completed novels? Why would my publishers — not just here in the US, but all around the world — ever consent to this? They make millions and millions of dollars every time a new Ice & Fire book comes out, as do I. Delaying makes no sense. Why would HBO want the books delayed? The books help create interest in the show, just as the show creates interest in the books.
Still don’t trust him? Well, there might be a fun solution in store for you.
