Why Is The Winds of Winter Taking So Long?

There is still no release date for The Winds of Winter, Book 6 of A Song of Ice and Fire. It isn't on our calendar and is still to be announced. The most concrete progress figure from George R.R. Martin came in October 2022, when he said he was "about three-quarters of the way done" ^[1]. His US publisher, Bantam, has since dismissed online claims that the book is finished as false ^[2].

That's the short version. Below is what is actually known, what Martin has said in his own words and in what order, and what would have to happen before anyone can put a date on the calendar.

Is there a release date for The Winds of Winter?

No. Neither Martin nor Bantam has announced one, and nothing official points to a particular season or year. Any date you see on a forum, a retailer placeholder or a social media post is a guess.

I know the temptation. Refreshing the Goodreads page for Book 6 has become a ritual for a lot of readers, but it's a ritual, not a strategy. The page won't change until the publisher says something.

How long has the wait been?

A long time, and it's measured in years rather than months. Five main books are out, and the gap since the newest, A Dance with Dragons, is now much longer than readers would have expected when they finished it. If you want to compare the gaps between earlier books yourself, every publication date is listed on the series page.

What hasn't faded is interest. A Game of Thrones is number 18 of the 83,471 books in our catalogue by Hardcover readers. AuthorPing's own daily count shows that book's Hardcover readership growing by about 1.8% a week, measured over the last 28 days. People are still starting at the beginning, which means the queue for Book 6 keeps getting longer, not shorter.

What has George R.R. Martin said about the delay?

Here is what he has said, in order.

October 2022: "about three-quarters of the way done"

At a Penguin Random House Q&A in October 2022, Martin gave what The Week calls his most substantial progress update in years ^[1]. He said he was "about three-quarters of the way done" with the book ^[1].

That's a genuinely useful figure, and it's the most specific one he has given. It's worth reading it carefully, though. It describes a draft in progress, not a countdown. Three-quarters of a very long novel still leaves a quarter of a very long novel to write, revise and finish.

September 2024: new pages, and work getting harder

In September 2024, Martin said he had added new pages to both The Winds of Winter and the second part of another book he has been working on at the same time ^[1]. The Week also reports that he said he was finding it harder to get work done ^[1].

Those two points matter together. He was still writing the book, and he was also, by his own account, splitting time across projects and finding the work itself slower going.

October 2024: a Braavos story can wait

In October 2024, Martin said he would like to write a Braavos story that had been developed for HBO ^[1]. He also said he would return to that shelved project after The Winds of Winter is done ^[1].

If you're looking for a statement of priorities, that's a fairly clear one. The new idea goes in the queue behind Book 6, not in front of it.

So why is it taking so long?

The reading that fits best with what Martin himself has said is a plain one. He has been writing more than one book at once, and he has said that getting work done has become harder ^[1]. Both of those slow a finished manuscript down, and neither needs a dramatic theory to explain it.

Nothing in his public comments suggests the book has been abandoned. His October 2024 remarks put it ahead of other work he'd like to do ^[1]. Beyond that, I'm not going to guess at reasons he hasn't given.

Was The Winds of Winter leaked or finished?

No, according to the publisher. An online rumour claimed that Martin had finished the book and was working with his publisher on a release plan ^[2]. IBTimes UK reports that the same anonymous rumour also promised a Comic-Con reveal and an autumn release ^[3].

Bantam, Martin's US publisher, shut it down in a statement to Entertainment Weekly:

"The online chatter you are seeing regarding a supposed leak is false." ^[2]

IBTimes UK reads that denial as meaning no finished draft has been handed in and no release date is set ^[3]. Winter Is Coming's writer took a slightly brighter view, calling Bantam's response soft confirmation that it will still publish the book once it is turned in ^[2]. That second point is the site's own interpretation, not something Bantam actually said, so treat it as a fair inference rather than a promise ^[2].

The lesson for anyone following this series is a familiar one. Anonymous sources are, by definition, very hard to hold to anything.

What would it take for a date to be announced?

Going by the publisher's denial, the first step hasn't happened yet: the finished manuscript has to reach Bantam ^[3]. A release date would follow from that handover, not come before it.

When it does happen, the news will come from Martin or from Bantam. Those are the two sources worth trusting. Things worth ignoring until one of them confirms it:

• Anonymous "leaks" claiming the book is done
• Rumoured reveals at conventions
• Placeholder dates on shop listings
• Anyone who says they know the season but can't say how

What should I read while I wait?

The obvious answer is the right one: re-read. Five books is a lot of story to hold in your head, and Book 6 will pick up threads from all of them. The full A Song of Ice and Fire reading order is on our series page, with every book listed in order and its date.

If you'd rather not start again from A Game of Thrones, the last two books are where the story currently stands. A Feast for Crows opens after the death of King Joffrey, with Cersei ruling as regent in King's Landing. A Dance with Dragons leaves Daenerys Targaryen in the east, ruling with her three dragons as queen of a city built on dust and death, with thousands of enemies setting out to find her. Those are the threads Book 6 has to carry on from.

If you go back to the beginning, A Clash of Kings and A Storm of Swords are where the war for the Iron Throne spreads across the whole map, so a full re-read gives you the clearest picture of who is still standing and why.

Is the book still coming?

Everything official says yes. Martin has kept describing it as work in progress ^[1], and Bantam's statement denied a rumour of a finished book, not the book itself ^[2]. What nobody can honestly tell you yet is when.

If you'd rather not keep checking, AuthorPing tells you when a series or author you love has a new book coming out and shows a countdown to every release. It's free on iPhone and Android, and it means the next you hear of Book 6 will be real news rather than another rumour.