Updates on George R.R. Martin's "The Winds of Winter" novel have been scant, and there are speculations that HBO's "Game of Thrones" Season 7 may premiere ahead of the book's release.
"The Winds of Winter," the sixth novel in Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series, has been a long-gestating project so far. The book was initially expected to precede the premiere of "Game of Thrones" Season 6 last year, but expectations did not materialize. In response to the growing backlash following the delay, Martin gave a brief update on his Live Journal blog.
"Not done yet, but I've made progress," Martin said, referring to "The Winds of Winter." "But not as much as I hoped a year ago, when I thought to be done by now. I think it will be out this year." Martin jokingly added that he thought the same thing last year.
The acclaimed writer admitted that although he's written "dozens of chapters" and "hundreds of pages," there is still a lot left to do. With that said, fans of the books and the television series presume that "Game of Thrones" Season 7 will be out long before Martin finishes the sixth tome.
Traditionally, HBO releases new "Game of Thrones" seasons every spring, particularly in early April. The "Game of Thrones" Season 7 release date has been pushed a bit further due to the fact that filming for the series began late in 2016.
According to Digital Spy, showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss explained that filming was moved in time for winter since "sunny weather doesn't really serve our purposes" as winter has arrived in Westeros in the seventh season. A June 25 release date was previously leaked on IMBd but was later removed.
Meanwhile, HBO has released a brief teaser giving fans a glimpse of Jon Snow and Sansa and Arya Stark.
