3 ms·

I agree with Neil Gaiman. GRRM doesn't owe anyone anything. Some in the fandom are particularly obnoxious, like when they warned him "not to pull a 'Robert Jord

by the_af 5y ago

I agree with Neil Gaiman. GRRM doesn't owe anyone anything. Some in the fandom are particularly obnoxious, like when they warned him "not to pull a 'Robert Jordan'" (i.e. dying before completing the saga). George was right to lash out at them. That said... I think sagas like A Song of Ice and Fire are not exactly the kind of standalone literature were it's reasonable to pay for the book you're reading, and anything else is an extra. They are more like a TV show, even if HBO's didn't exist. We accept that fans protest the cancellation or bad endings of shows they love, and ASoIaF is very much a TV show in book form. So GRRM doesn't owe fans anything. But it's also reasonable for fans to be upset and vocal about the lack of progress of this TV-show-in-book-form saga. Also: I might be a minority that enjoys the journey more than the destination, so I enjoy reading about these noble houses, their family mottos, their vendettas, but even then in a work like this they are all in service of a satisfying payoff. This isn't an experimental "high literature" set of novels. Not providing this payoff would be like Agatha Christie never revealing "whodunnit" in one of her mystery novels.

horsawlarway 5y ago
> So GRRM doesn't owe fans anything. I would say sticking to your word matters, and he is consistently unable to do so. He is very excited about all the attention his public promises get, and then is very condescending about any sort of reminder (years later) that he made those promises. I personally don't think he owes anyone content, but I also find the man incredibly distasteful. Don't make promises you know damn well you won't keep. Especially don't make those promises because you delight in the attention and fawning fans, and then turn around and act like those fans are utter monsters for, ya know, maybe expecting you to keep your promises.
- the_af 5y ago
  Where did he call or consider his fans "monsters"? He specifically lashed out against some very rude fans who made an offensive mention of Robert Jordan's death, a personal friend of GRRM. I 100% support him on this. Fandom can be very toxic. As for the rest: I don't think GRRM is trying to mislead anyone on purpose. I honestly think he's lost the energy to focus on ASoIaF and cannot find a way to solve this conundrum and finish the damn thing. I think he would if he could. If he's deceiving anyone, it's himself. Writing literature isn't like writing CRUD code, is not just a matter of sitting your ass down and typing words. Sometimes that helps, sometimes it doesn't. I think he's lost his inspiration and cannot get it back, but I don't buy he's being cynical about this or purposefully cheating his fans.

by the_af 5y ago

horsawlarway 5y ago

> So GRRM doesn't owe fans anything. I would say sticking to your word matters, and he is consistently unable to do so. He is very excited about all the attention his public promises get, and then is very condescending about any sort of reminder (years later) that he made those promises. I personally don't think he owes anyone content, but I also find the man incredibly distasteful. Don't make promises you know damn well you won't keep. Especially don't make those promises because you delight in the attention and fawning fans, and then turn around and act like those fans are utter monsters for, ya know, maybe expecting you to keep your promises.

the_af 5y ago
Where did he call or consider his fans "monsters"? He specifically lashed out against some very rude fans who made an offensive mention of Robert Jordan's death, a personal friend of GRRM. I 100% support him on this. Fandom can be very toxic. As for the rest: I don't think GRRM is trying to mislead anyone on purpose. I honestly think he's lost the energy to focus on ASoIaF and cannot find a way to solve this conundrum and finish the damn thing. I think he would if he could. If he's deceiving anyone, it's himself. Writing literature isn't like writing CRUD code, is not just a matter of sitting your ass down and typing words. Sometimes that helps, sometimes it doesn't. I think he's lost his inspiration and cannot get it back, but I don't buy he's being cynical about this or purposefully cheating his fans.