--- title: Fans of 'Game of Thrones' Novels Must Wait For The Next Release description: Fans will have to make do with a compilation of prequels rather than the next instalment in the saga canonical: https://time.com/3689226/martin-winds-winter-game-thrones/ author: Naina Bajekal article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-01-30T14:09:37.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:05:57.252Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: Fans of 'Game of Thrones' Novels Must Wait For The Next Release og:description: Fans will have to make do with a compilation of prequels rather than the next instalment in the saga og:url: https://time.com/3689226/martin-winds-winter-game-thrones/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c9eea86cf8c20af/698779e1524fc051cbdebe6f/thrones-scene.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: This image released by HBO shows Kit Harington in a scene from "Game of Thrones." og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Fans of 'Game of Thrones' Novels Must Wait For The Next Release twitter:description: Fans will have to make do with a compilation of prequels rather than the next instalment in the saga twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c9eea86cf8c20af/698779e1524fc051cbdebe6f/thrones-scene.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Release of Next 'Game of Thrones' Novel Will Not Happen in 2015 ## Video: Game of Blocks: The Man Who Built Westeros in Minecraft [Watch (HLS stream): Game of Blocks: The Man Who Built Westeros in Minecraft](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/DZjTdNJR.m3u8) (3:40)  _Published 2013-05-23. The continent of Westeros is home to 'Game of Thrones' and now exists in the virtual world of Minecraft. Meet Jacob Granberry, the artist behind the epic build._  by [Naina Bajekal](https://time.com/author/naina-bajekal/)  ## Naina Bajekal Bajekal was executive editor and international editor at TIME. Jan 30, 2015 2:09 PM UTC  This image released by HBO shows Kit Harington in a scene from "Game of Thrones." This image released by HBO shows Kit Harington in a scene from "Game of Thrones."Helen Sloan—AP  by [Naina Bajekal](https://time.com/author/naina-bajekal/)  ## Naina Bajekal Bajekal was executive editor and international editor at TIME. Jan 30, 2015 2:09 PM UTC George R.R. Martin’s _The Winds of Winter_, the long-awaited sixth novel in his ‘_A Song of Ice and Fire_‘ saga that inspired the HBO series _Game of Thrones_, will not be published in 2015, his publisher [told](http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jan/30/george-rr-martin-the-winds-of-winter-publication) _The Guardian_ on Friday. Jane Johnson said HarperCollins would instead be publishing a new illustrated compilation of three official prequel novellas to the series, _The Hedge Knight, The Sworn Sword_ and _The Mystery Knight._ “The short novels have been previously published in separate anthologies but never put together before, and this will be a particularly beautiful edition,” Johnson told _The_ _Guardian._ But she added that she had no information on a possible publication date for _The Winds of Winter_, which fans have been eagerly awaiting since Martin published the bestselling _A Dance with Dragons_ in 2011. In December Martin posted on his website to suppress speculation over the book’s release. He wrote: “I’ve said before, and I will say again, I don’t play games with news about the books. I know how many people are waiting, how long they have been waiting, how anxious they are. I am still working on _Winds_. When it’s done, I will announce it here…I don’t know how I can make it any clearer.” \[[_Guardian_](http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/jan/30/george-rr-martin-the-winds-of-winter-publication)\] ### See The Real-Life People Who Inspired Game of Thrones Characters  From left: Cersei and Margaret of Anjou HBO; Getty Images  From Left: Khaleesi and Queen Elizabeth I. HBO; Getty Images  From Left: Melisandre and Bloody Mary Helen Sloan—HBO; Getty Images  From left: Talisa Stark and Anne Boleyn. Helen Sloan—HBO; Getty Images  From left: Brienne of Tarth and Joan of Arc. HBO; DeAgostini—Getty Images  From left: Henry VIII and Robert Baratheon. HBO; Getty Images  From left: Joffrey and Caligula. HBO; De Agostini—Getty Images _Read next:_ [_Amanda Peet Thought Husband’s Show_ ](http://time.com/3685292/amanda-peet-game-of-thrones/?xid=time%5Freadnext)[Game of Thrones](http://time.com/3685292/amanda-peet-game-of-thrones/?xid=time%5Freadnext)[ _Was a ‘Terrible Idea’_](http://time.com/3685292/amanda-peet-game-of-thrones/?xid=time%5Freadnext) [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/?sl%5Fautoplay=true&xid=spl-fullbrief-article) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3689226/martin-winds-winter-game-thrones/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3689226/martin-winds-winter-game-thrones/"},"headline":"Release of Next 'Game of Thrones' Novel Will Not Happen in 2015","datePublished":"2015-01-30T14:09:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:05:57.252Z","description":"Fans will have to make do with a compilation of prequels rather than the next instalment in the saga","url":"https://time.com/3689226/martin-winds-winter-game-thrones/","keywords":["Books"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c9eea86cf8c20af/698779e1524fc051cbdebe6f/thrones-scene.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Naina Bajekal","jobTitle":"Bajekal was executive editor and international editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/naina-bajekal/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2c9eea86cf8c20af/698779e1524fc051cbdebe6f/thrones-scene.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"This image released by HBO shows Kit Harington in a scene from \"Game of Thrones.\"","caption":"This image released by HBO shows Kit Harington in a scene from \"Game of Thrones.\"","creditText":"Helen Sloan—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/books/","name":"Books"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3689226/martin-winds-winter-game-thrones/","name":"Release of Next 'Game of Thrones' Novel Will Not Happen in 2015"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Game of Blocks: The Man Who Built Westeros in Minecraft","description":"The continent of Westeros is home to 'Game of Thrones' and now exists in the virtual world of Minecraft. 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