George RR Martin: The ending of the Game of Thrones novel is different from the American TV series, and readers will still be dissatisfied

Author George RR Martin has provided another update on the next A Song of Ice and Fire book and the series as a whole. Writing on his Not A Blog blog, Martin said one of the most common questions he gets is whether his book series will end like the HBO show. Martin said that will not happen.

Martin said he's like a gardener when it comes to writing, as his stories "grow and develop and change" as he writes. He said he has a general idea of ​​where the story is going and the big scenes, but he's also constantly changing his mind and coming up with new ideas.

"I've been working in my winter garden. Things are growing... and changing, as they do for us gardeners. Things change, things shift, new ideas come to me (thank you, inspiration), old ideas prove unworkable, and I write, I rewrite, I reorganize, I rip everything apart and rewrite it again, I go through doors that lead to nowhere, and doors that open to miracles. Sounds crazy, I know," he says, "but that's how I write. Always have. Always will. For better or for worse."

Recently, Martin noted that his story in The Winds of Winter was taking him "further and further away from the TV series." Some parts of Game of Thrones that happened in the TV series will also appear in The Winds of Winter, although "maybe not in exactly the same way," Martin hinted, but overall the rest of The Winds of Winter will be "very different" from the TV series.

"Really, when you think about it, it's inevitable. These novels are much bigger and more complex than the show. Certain things that happen on HBO don't happen in the books. And vice versa."

The Winds of Winter will feature characters who have never appeared in the show, including Victarion Greyjoy, Arianne Martell, Areo Hotah, Jon Connington and Aeron Damphair. "They will all have their own chapters, and the things they do and say will affect the story and the main characters in the show," Martin said.

He added that he wrote “an army” of minor characters important to the plot of The Winds of Winter, including Lady Stoneheart, Young Griff, the Ragged Prince, Penny, Brown Ben Plumb, Shaver, Marwyn the Wizard, Darkstar and Jenny Westerling.

The HBO show has already strayed significantly from Martin's writing. He noted that Euron Greyjoy is "very, very, very, very different" from the Euron in his books. Part of the reason Martin took so long to write The Winds of Winter was to figure out what to do with characters like Queis, Rickon Stark and Jeyne Poole.

In a bigger development, Martin also clarified that not all characters who survived to the end of HBO's Game of Thrones will be alive when Martin finishes his A Song of Ice and Fire series. Likewise, not all characters who died on the HBO show will die in A Song of Ice and Fire, with Martin stating that while "maybe most" will actually die, not all will: "Of course, I can change my mind again next week and write the next chapter. This is gardening after all."

As for the overall finale, Martin said "some things will be the same. A lot won't be." He expects it will be divisive.

“No doubt once I’m done there will be a huge debate about which version of the story is better. Some people will prefer my book, some will prefer the TV show. That’s fine, you pay your money, you make your choice”. (I do worry that a certain percentage of fans are so angry about how long The Winds of Winter took to come out that they’re ready to hate the book without even reading it. That makes me sad but there’s nothing I can do about it except write the best book I can and hope that when it comes out the majority of fans will read it with a non-judgmental and open mind).”