The Winds of Winter Release: Date Still Not Definite But George R.R. Martin Won’t Do “Game of Thrones” Until Book Is Done

By Kara Michelle Aug 07, 2014 07:47 AM EDT

"The Winds of Winter" release date has not yet been fixed but it will likely be not beyond next year. George R.R. Martin who has been contributing one "Game of Thrones" script per season for the last four seasons has decided he won't write one for Season 5. Neither will he make any set visits this year. He will finish writing "The Winds of Winter" book first according to the author himself in an interview he gave Vulture at the San Diego Comic-Con last week. "Not this year, no - once again because I have this book to finish," he said regarding his involvement with the "Game of Thrones" TV series.

"The Winds of Winter" sample chapters have already been posted on the Internet and the author already has some very definite ideas as to how the story will unfold. "Obviously, I'm going to continue the story. There were a lot of cliffhangers at the end of "A Dance with Dragons," he told Today in Travel. "Those will be resolved very early. I'm going to open with the two big battles that I was building up to, the battle in the ice and the battle at Mereen - the battle of Slaver's Bay. And then take it from there."

Martin even has an estimate as to how many pages "The Winds of Winter" will have. He estimates that "The Winds of Winter," along with "A Dream of Spring," the tentative title of the final volume in his "A Song of Fire and Ice" epic saga, will both be very big books of about 1,500 manuscript pages each. In a talk with Entertainment Weekly, Martin revealed more details about "The Winds of Winter" storyline. He said, "We have more deaths, and we have more betrayals. We have more marriages." Tyrion will also along the way cross path with Daenerys. He said, "Well, Tyrion and Dany will intersect, in a way, but for much of the book they're still apart. They both have large roles to play here. Tyrion has decided that he would actually like to live, for one thing, which he wasn't entirely sure of during the last book, and he's now working toward that end - if he can survive the battle that's breaking out all around him. And Dany has embraced her heritage as a Targaryen and embraced the Targaryen words. So they're both coming home."

So perhaps, it's all just a matter of putting all those details together, supplying some missing pieces, polishing it up, and the book will be finished. "The Winds of Winter" release could be sooner than expected since the 65-year old author has already made up his mind to cut down on the distractions and buckle up for work.