HBO Locks Up George R.R. Martin
image via www.ew.com
George R.R. Martin is a busy, busy man. Not only is he working on the remainder of his Song of Ice and Fire series, editing numerous collections, writing and producing episodes for the Game of Thrones series, but now he has signed an overall deal with HBO. According to the report out of Deadline Martin’s deal will contract him to the network for the next two years. During this time he will continue to serve as a co-executive producer for Game of Thrones while also, and more importantly, developing new projects for the network. What would a George R.R. Martin TV series look like? We may find out shortly.
I feel that it is likely that as many people will be outraged by this news as thrilled. I can already hear the cries of, “Write your damn book, George!” rising from the internet. What I would say in defense of this is that for one a person who has created something as great as the universe of A Song of Ice and Fire could go on to create an equally great concept and framework for a HBO series we may come to love in the future. In addition to this, one of the worst things for a writer is to be bogged down and become a slave to a novel they no longer have love for. If taking a little time away to realize other projects and life goals helps Martin sit back down to the remaining Song of Ice and Fire novels with a renewed sense of creativity it’s a win-win.
He spent most of the 80s writing, producing and pitching TV shows.