'Winds Of Winter' Author Ready For Imprisonment If He Misses 2020 Deadline

Gorge RR Martin has generally refrained from giving out a release date for “Winds of Winter,” but the author recently gave a deadline for the launch of the book. The next book in the “A Song of Ice and Fire” series will be out by 2020, the author has confirmed.

What prompted Martin to become so emotional as to announce a deadline despite it being against his self-imposed rule? The cause was reportedly a promo message by Air New Zealand. The video was a personal message to the author, inviting him to the beautiful country where the movies based on Martin’s favorite books “Lord of the Rings” were filmed.

The video pointed out that the red carpets and talk show interviews are keeping Martin from finishing “Winds of Winter.” The video went on to add that the pressure to release the next book may be too much for Martin, comparing it to the pressure a Stark would feel after getting a wedding invite.

Air New Zealand offered a paid trip to Martin to help him relax and get his creative juices flowing. One often repeated phrase in “A Song of Ice and Fire” is “winter is coming.” The video explained that winters in New Zealand are beautiful and inspiring. There is a lot of empty terrain in the country, so the author will have his privacy and space.

Responding to the video on his blog, Martin thanked Air New Zealand for the offer. The author promised to visit in the summer of 2020 and vowed to have “Winds of Winter” released by that time.

If not, the author offered his formal written permission to imprison him in a small cabin on White Island until he finishes the book.

Martin will be going to New Zealand next year to attend the Worldcon, which begins on July 29, 2020. It remains to be seen if the author will finally meet this deadline or once again fail to deliver the book, as he has done many times in the past.

There have been some rumors that Martin has finished “Winds of Winter” and has been keeping it hidden for the finale of “Game of Thrones.” In a previous blog post, the author had confirmed that the rumors are false, and he also confirmed that he is still writing the book.