Understanding George RR Martin

For the first time, I think I understand George RR Martin a little bit.  Martin is notorious for taking his time with releasing the final two books in the Game of Thrones saga(for what it’s worth, I’d pay good money if he ended the novels totally differently than the TV series ended).  People have bemoaned for years why he doesn’t just finish up The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring.  What is he waiting for?  Just do it!

Well, now that I’m in the middle of writing my first truly epic novel, this one involving elements of both science fiction and fantasy, I get it(a little).  The world I’m developing is grand in scope, and the story has layer upon layer of subtlety.  The characters require development, and the world itself is complex.  I’m four chapters in, and I’m nowhere close to the main part of the story; if I don’t set the world up right, the rest of the story won’t make much sense or get the reader to care at all.

Yes, I need to just sit down and outline, and then write, but it’s not that simple.  Given what I’m trying to create, I’m trying to be careful and take my time so I can slowly build up to what is required for a total story.  I think this will likely be my largest novel, and I find myself wondering if it’ll all fit in one book(that’s one of my worries, that I’ll have to break it out into two or more after finishing it up).

So cut old George a break.  This really is a lot more involved than an outsider understands.  No, I’m not saying I’m on the level of Martin, but rather that I get the timeline he’s involved in.  Trying a grand scale of an adventure in such a complicated world takes time, and much more than most realize.