George R.R. Martin decided to go to Worldcon over the weekend rather than work on the end of his epic fantasy and finish The Winds of Winter. While on a panel about the future of epic fantasy with Brandon Sanderson and others, he got a question from a fan that he really didn’t want to answer.
Over the last year and a half the excuses for A Song of Ice And Fire being incomplete and George R.R. Martin’s inability to finish The Winds of Winter have become more than absurd. The author has gone from blaming toxic fandom, to talking about Trump and fascism in 2024, to a 2025 where he made it clear he’s definitely not even working on the project.
This year alone he’s started a bar in Santa Fe New Mexico and taken on a new project for an animated Hercules movie, leaving fans who started in A Game Of Thrones with the obvious fact that he’s not going to be finishing the series before he dies. In fact, he’s already given interviews stating he’s probably not going to finish it in his lifetime.
It’s become beyond a joke to fans at this juncture, as most people just want him to be honest about the situation, which for whatever reason, Martin refuses to do.
At Worldcon, one fan was bold enough to ask George R.R. Martin the question, one that now has been condemned as “rude” or “inappropriate” despite it being anything but in the context of a panel on the future of epic fantasy.
A bold female fan asked in a hostile room, “George, you’re not gonna be around for much longer. And this is a tough question. This is more directed at Brandon. I was wondering, like, how would you feel about someone else taking over and finishing the books?”
The crowd immediately starts booing as if the question didn’t make any sense, though it is a poignant one especially since Brandon Sanderson was brought in to take over A Wheel Of Time from Robert Jordan upon his passing.
Sanderson can be heard saying “not me,” during the uproar, confirming he wouldn’t be the one to do the job.
George R.R. Martin is so panicked about the question that he immediately gets up to leave the panel.
This is probably a relief for Martin fans, as Sanderson’s style and tone have nowhere near the prose capability of Martin and it would be a sharp contrast in work.
The best fans can hope for is someone with deep knowledge of A Song Of Ice And Fire working in tandem with generative AI to mimic Martin’s style for the piece, something that would be a monumental undertaking by itself as Martin wrote the world into a corner with far too many perspective characters to satisfactorilly end in one book, regardless of who takes it over.
What do you think of Brandon Sanderson being ruled out to take over The Winds of Winter? Leave a comment and let us know.
If you enjoy great fantasy fiction with great worldbuilding and a classic D&D feel, read The Adventures of Baron von Monocle six-book series and support Fandom Pulse!
NEXT: BookTok Furious With Sexual Assault Allegations After Dark Romantasy Event "Sinners & Stardust"
I think we all know that I'm the best candidate.
And I'm the last person on the planet who would be asked to do it.
Considering Sanderson has been adding gay/trans characters into his fantasy stories, I’d say he doesn’t have the intestinal fortitude to write with the toughness that GOT requires.
Seems like he knows it.