‘Witcher' Author Understands Why George R.R. Martin Is Taking So Long on ‘Winds of Winter'
It's been over a decade since the last Witcher book was released—2013's Season of Storms, which got an English translation in 2018—but there's a new title coming very soon from Andrzej Sapkowski: September's Crossroads of Ravens. In between books, Netflix launched its hit Witcher series, which still has a fourth and fifth season yet to share. That puts Sapkowski on a different sort of timeline from another author whose fans have been waiting awhile for a new book to arrive in his adapted-for-TV series—you know him, you love him, it's George R.R. Martin—and it's something he's taken into consideration.
At the recent Opole Book Festival in Sapkowski's native Poland, the author—who's known to be humorously outspoken in interviews—was asked about Martin (Polygon via Redanian Intelligence; if you understand Polish, there's also a video of the discussion), specifically the idea that Game of Thrones' disappointing final seasons, which went beyond the narrative of Martin's books, are to blame for the long wait for Winds of Winter.
'I totally understand him,' the Witcher author said. 'Because if someone had pulled a stunt like that on me, filming a series based on my books, and then getting ahead of what I intended to write, I'd also be wondering whether there's any point in writing anymore. If it's already been done, right? Makes no sense. It's nice when they adapt your work, that's the author's bloody right, but to adapt what doesn't exist yet, to extrapolate like that? That's just indecent.'
He suggested that perhaps Martin 'got offended that they filmed the continuation [of Game of Thrones],' though Martin himself has never spoken out about that specifically. (He is, however, getting extremely tired of people asking him about Winds of Winter.)
Sapkowski applied some of his trademark wit when saying there's one big difference between him and Martin: 'I will write something else. Relax. No need to fear. And unlike George R.R. Martin—whom, by the way, I know personally—when I say I'll write something, I will.'
Crossroads of Ravens was released in Poland last year, but the English-language version arrives on shelves this September 30.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what's next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
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