George R.R. Martin's Blog, page 31

So, about our new train set…

The pandemic has slowed things down, needless to say, but my partners and I are moving ahead with our plans to restore the historic Santa Fe Southern Railway.   There’s a lot of work ahead, and no sure way of knowing whether how long it will all take before we are ready to roll… but at the end, we hope to have something truly unique, a railroad different for the city different.

I thought you guys might enjoy a little peak into the history of the line, and some of our...

They keep telling me that calendars are on their way out, that nobody uses them any more, that hip folks just check the day and date on their smart phones.   Maybe so, maybe so… but I am old school, and I love them, can’t help myself.  And I love great fantasy art as well, so our annual SONG OF ICE & FIRE illustrated calendar is one of my favorite things.

Every year we feature the work of a different artist, each one bringing their own unique vision to the Seven Kingdoms and my characters.   Thi...

Some cool new content for Wild Cards fans on the official Wild Cards website.

On the blog, Kevin Andrew Murphy takes a detailed look at the history of the Church of Jesus Christ, Joker:

The Church of Jesus Christ, Joker

Meanwhile, our ace interviewer Ti Mikkel has had a sit-down with Daniel Abraham, creator of Jonathan Hive, Spasm, Father Henry Obst, and other fun characters.   That one is worth a look as well:

Daniel Abraham

Meanwhile, congratulations are in order to Daniel and his fellow Wil...

The pandemic is not over.   We are deep in the midst of the predicted second wave.   And who knows how many more surges will follow this one?   Too many, unless more of us do a better job of staying in quarantine and wearing our masks.

New Mexico has done a much better job with Covid-19 than most of the surrounding states, thanks in large part to our amazing governor Michelle Lujan Grisham.  But numbers are rising here too.

I don’t know how long this will last.   We just had our first virtual wo...

There’s a wonderful writer’s workshop held every year in New Hampshire — the Odyssey Writers’ Workshop, headed up by Jeanne Cavelos, for aspiring authors of science fiction, fantasy, and horror.   I taught one summer at Odyssey a decade or two back, and more recently, I sponsor an annual scholarship there, the MISKATONIC SCHOLARSHIP, for a promising new writer of Lovecraftian cosmic horror (for more details on Odyssey and the Miskatonic Scholarship, look back through my older posts here, until y...

These are sad sad times, and it seems as if every day they get a little sadder.

I was shocked and horrified to hear of the sudden death of Susan Ellison out in Sherman Oaks.   She died in the house she had shared with Harlan for so many years, sometimes known as Ellison Wonderland or the Lost Aztec Temple of Mars.  At this writing, no one seems quite certain of the cause of death.

No one saw this coming, not even her closest friends… and certainly not me.   Susan was only 60.   Which I suppose i...

Life is hard when you’re a Jets fan.

Kermit knows the truth.

The New York Jets, having not won a SuperBowl since 1969 or been in the playoffs since 2010, often have very high draft picks.

Sometimes they select a bust.  In those cases, the players are cut.

Sometimes, however, they get a really terrific premium talent, the kind of generational player you can build a contender around.  In those cases, the Jets get a few years out of the player… and THEN trade him away.

For more draft picks.

Which ...

CoNZealand is almost upon us.

As everyone knows (except perhaps the fellow who has been quarantining is his bomb shelter all these months, cut off from human contract), we are not actually gathering in Wellington, New Zealand this year, thanks to the pandemic.  Instead we are having the very first virtual worldcon.

The virtual Nebula Awards went pretty well, so I am hoping that Virtual Worldcon will as well.   But worldcon is a much bigger undertaking, so no one knows.  Least of all me.  Yes, I ...

This writing stuff is hard.

Even so, it has been going well of late.   Three more chapters completed this past week.   And good progress on several more.

Still a long long way to go, though.   Do not get too excited.

In my copious spare time, have been doing some editorial groundwork on three new Wild Cards books as well:  PAIRING UP and SLEEPER STRADDLES and the mosaic HOUSE RULES, where Agatha Christie, H.P. Lovecraft, and P.G. Wodehouse have a wild weekend.   They should be fun… but we are i...