Game of Thrones - George R.R. Martin Talks About Fantasy, His Books and a New Book Coming Next Year
2 Aug 2011
Game of ThronesHere's a very interesting video from CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation). A short interview with George R. R. Martin (inter-cut with GoT footage)about his fifth book in the A Song of Ice and Fire saga, fantasy books in general and his new book coming out next year, 'The World of Ice and Fire'.
Also after the jump there is a short video article about the success of Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice and Fire as a series.
Source: CBC
I almost applauded when he said he was releasing a world compendium next year.....
ReplyDeleteThat is something myself and many, MANY fans have wondered about and hoped for for years!
I'm very interested how much will be in it. The Wheel of Time guidebook went back to the earliest events mentioned in the books. It'd be cool to know more about the very, very early days of Westeros.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of the artwork he mentioned. I thought I would post some great examples of the landscape of Westeros and its more famous structures.
ReplyDeleteAll of these landscapes are done by Ted Nasmith. http://www.tednasmith.com/index.html
A world compendium would be great :D, even better if next year.
ReplyDeleteWheel of Time!!!! I'm eager to read the end of it!! so many years waiting! but yes, it would be interesting to read something from the early days of Westeros! :)
ReplyDeleteJust got the first book of The wheel of Time. Are they as good as GoT?
ReplyDeleteI have 150 pages left of aDwD and I desperately need something else to read. I´m gonna be so sad.
Great with the world compendium. Can´t wait to get it.
I like WoT more than GoT... but perhaps it's because I began to read them before and they are classic to me... :) give them a try and tell us!! :)
ReplyDeleteThey start off well and they just go on and on and on. The series is incredibly drawn out.
ReplyDeleteThose are lovely. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteOkay, I've been reading The Wheel of Time for a long time so here's my opinion: The books are excellent. It is more of traditional fantasy saga than ASOIF but that is not a negative for me while it is for some.
ReplyDeleteBooks 1-7 are brilliant and I reread them all the time.
Book 8 was a lot like aFfC where some characters are missing from the narrative.
Book 9 also had some missing characters and was a bit slow going but it was a good read that had one hell of an ending.
Book 10 was a lot, and I mean, a lot of catchup for those missing characters. It is easily the worst book of the series mostly because nothing really happens aside from moving characters into place and the timelines can be hard to follow.
Book 11 got everyone back on their "path" in a big, big way. It had some great moments for the fan-favorite characters and wrapped up a lot of plots that had been wandering for a bit.*
Book 12 and 13 have been amazing. The last book is due out late this year or sometime early next year(most likely). So, basically, why are you not reading WoT right now?
*Robert Jordan was diagnosed with a rare blood disease after the publishing of this book. In the time before his death he made sure to tell those closest to him the end of the series. His very thorough notes have been passed on to Brandon Sanderson who is currently writing the books. Most fans think he is doing a great job of staying true to RJ's style and the story. From time to time you can tell when you're reading parts of the books RJ completed before he died and it is an amazing treat to get to read his words as intended.
Have you read books 11-13? I, personally, am really pleased with the way things are going now.
ReplyDeleteoh my, Dragonstone and Pyke look epic, when are they supposed to appear on the show?
ReplyDeleteDragonstone is the ancestral castle of the Targaryens, but not held by Stannis Baratheon and Pyke is one of the Castle on the island of the same name in the Iron Islands wwere the Greyjoys rule.
ReplyDeleteBoth should make an appearance next season I think.
Absolutely not. The series has some interesting content, but, the writing isn't the best and the story is pretty stereotypical fantasy. It's basically the Hero's Journey.
ReplyDeleteThe first few books are definitely the best and then... It meanders. Book 10 is an entire novel devoted to telling the story of what happened leading up to the end of Book 9.
It's definitely better than most stuff out there, but Robert Jordan is nowhere near as good as the likes of George R. R. Martin, Neil Gaiman, Jim Butcher, or Patrick Rothfuss.
I think he has been working on it heavily in tandem with Linda/Ellio of Westeros. With the two of them involved, it's going to be fantastic (unlike the Lost Encyclopedia, which was a huge letdown :().
ReplyDeleteYeah its pretty awesome that GRRM calls Elio to fact check his books and make sure there aren't time issues or contradictions. Ha! I find it so fun that the author looks to outsource the fact -checking of his own creations! XD
ReplyDeleteThe artwork is extraordinary, they look exactly as I imagined them from the books, posibbly even better.
ReplyDeleteawesome, thanks of the info
ReplyDeletegreat analysis! although I'm confused about the number of the books as I read them in Spanish and Spanish edition is chaotic! they divide some books in two, some they don't... I'm still waiting for the perfect Spanish edition... :S and I was surprised of how much I liked the first Sanderson's ! I know he must have a lot of notes from RJ, but he does an amazing job! I must read the second he wrote, but it's not available in Spanish yet... :( and I'm too lazy to read it in English... but maybe I should!! I can't wait, as the previous finale book was great!!! I think what I like most about WoT comparing it to GoT, is the fantasy element they had. I'm a fantasy adict reader xD, Dragonlance, Forgotten Realms, Belgariad/Mallorean .... anything you can think of, I read it! if not, then I don't know it or it isn't published here! lol (well, I'm maybe exaggerating! XD)
ReplyDeleteI must say I read 'Name of the wind' because all the great reviews I saw, and I admit it's a great novel, but I think it can't be compared to WoT... only a book vs. 13? no way! but I must say Neil Gaiman is a genius!! :D and also Sanderson's "Elantris" and "Mistborn" trilogy are great! if you haven't read them, do it if you can!! :)
ReplyDeletethanks for sharing! :)
ReplyDeleteQuality over Quantity :P. You're right in that Name of the Wind can't be compared to the huge series that is WoT, but Patrick Rothfuss is the superior author. His prose are some of the best I have ever read, fantasy or not. I look forward to his trilogy being complete.
ReplyDeleteAs for Sanderson, the only novel I have read of his is the standalone novel Warbreaker, which was quite good. A little messy at times, but he writes very well. Mistborn is definitely on my to read list, but only once I'm done AFfC/ADwD, Rothfuss' Wise Man's Fear, Butcher's Dresden Book 13, and Abercrombie's First Law trilogy.
xD, LOTS TO READ.
Thanks for the reply. Sounds ok to me. I´ll give it a try and let you know.
ReplyDeleteFunny that you mention Name of the Wind. I just ordered that as well. (and The Dragonbone chair by Tad Williams). I get them at the library, so it´s no loss if I don´t like them.
ReplyDeleteI read just about anything, but I haven´t read fantasy for years. I LOVE GoT and thinks george R.R. Martins writting is amazing. So now I want more of the same kind.
I also read the True Blood and Anita Blake books, but it´s not even in the same league.
Thanks for all the good ideas. I think I´m gonna go for Name of the Wind first.
OMG how could I forgot "Memory, sorrow and thorn"? read The dragonbone chair first! lol (well, in fact, that first one is the one I like least of the 4, but anyways, it's really great! Tad Williams is a genius too!! :)
ReplyDeleteHmmmm...now I don´t know what to pick! :-)
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear that The dragonbone Chair was a good pick aswell.
But first I have to finish aDwD. I´m on vacation and it seems like I have less time to read.
wow! yes, lots to read! XD I haven't read the second Rothfuss' Wise men fear, but a friend said to me it was not as good as the first one... so I admire Robert Jordan's WoT for keeping the quality in so many books! that was what I tried to explain saying I can't compare both writers.... and.. Warbreaker? didn't know that, I'll search for it!! :)
ReplyDeleteand I think exactly the same of Perrin XD I kinda hate Faile, and he's so into her that it's annoying! XD my fave character is Mat, followed by Rand and Min, also Aviendha and sometimes Nynaeve... I can't stand Elaine or Egwene...and I must stop naming characters because there are too many! XDDDD and I understand you about re-reading... I think I'll re-read all of them when the last one comes out... not before xD
Lol, my friends said the same about Wise Man's Fear, but that doesn't mean it's BAD. They said they still loved it... Just that it wasn't as good as Book 1.
ReplyDeleteAlso, agreed about Egwene and Elaine, but I also loathe Min. Lan is pretty cool I guess... But yeah, Mat is just way more awesome than everyone else put together xD.
Ah, well, I stopped reading the Anita Blake books when they turned into softcore porn around Book 10. The series by Butcher I mentioned, called The Dresden Files, were initially marketed as "Anita Blake For Men", but since the first couple novels, the quality has gone up to the point where they are far superior. It's still somewhat fluff compared to the likes of ASoIaF, but, really fun and well written.
ReplyDeleteAnother series I've heard VERY good things about when being compared to Martin's novels are "The First Law" Trilogy, by Joe Abercrombie. What drew me into Martin's world were his dark and complex characters. Abercrombie, unlike most other fantasy authors (including Robert Jordan and his WoT), supposedly has some of that dark complexity.
I stopped reading Anita Blake around book 10 aswell. To be honest I really liked the first 6 and after that it went down hill. I haven´t read them the last 5 years or so.
ReplyDeleteWhat I love about GoT is all the Characters (ok, honestly sometimes there is too many). I love that he changes it around so the "bad" guy ends up being good (or at least having some positive actions) and the good people do bad things. And we just love them all. I like that the fantasy part of it is not totally out there, but just another part of the story. A lot of people complained that theres wasn´t enough fighting scenes in the series. But I love that. It´s not all about killing each other (well, there is a lot of that :-) ) But every killing seems to have a point.
Never heard of The Dresden files. I´ll check it out though.
And like you, I read books ( not just fantasy, but any book) for the characterizations. That is what makes a good book.
lol I understand you! I have several books to read and sometimes I don't know which one pick first! and I'm on vacation too and I think I read less than during the rest of the year although I have much more time... XD
ReplyDeleteI'll have to read it to judge myself! I'll see if my friend have it... I don't know if she bought it or a friend of her lent it to her...:/ agreed about Mat XD I enjoy him and his interaction with Tuon XD hilarious!! and Thom is great too! Lan sometimes gets on my nerves... XD so... serious! :P
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