hey all,
So I finally finished another read through of GRR Martin's first 3 Song of Ice and Fire books. Concurrently, I've been trying to see when the long awaited 5th book will be published. It is not looking good for this year, but maybe early next year.
After that book, we still have another two novels planned in the series. GRR Martin himself has promised fans not to "pull a Jordan," after the fantasy author Robert Jordan who died before completing his Wheel of Time series. Although that series is now being finished by another author, and will be completed in the next few years, GRRM's writing pace seems to have slowed down a bit, and I doubt I'll see the end of A Song of Ice and Fire before 2020.
Some cool news is that it looks like HBO will be turning at least the first book into a miniseries. They've got some pretty promising talent lined up for the main actors, and I'm really stoked about it.
Something else that is cool is there is a local connection to the series. A company based in East Lansing, MI is currently working with GRR Martin to make official replicas of the swords featured in the books, much as you can get Spartan swords, shields, and spears from 300, or heroes' weapons from the Lord of the Rings movies. They only have one sword available now, but are working to get production started for others.
After spending all night at the karaoke bar Friday night/Saturday morning, I've mostly been relaxing and enjoying reading. There was a festival in Omiya yesterday and today, though it seems like during the summer there is a festival almost every day somewhere in Japan. The outdoor club seems to have quieted down a bit, which is disappointing now that I have all this free time.
Cheers,
