Prolific fantasy author Brandon Sanderson, known for his Stormlight Archive and Mistborn series, has stated that he would not be the right person to finish George R.R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series should Martin be unable to complete it. Sanderson, who was chosen to conclude Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series after Jordan's death, told IGN that "Respectfully, I'm the wrong person to do this." He elaborated that if such a situation were to arise, Martin deserves an author who is as well-suited to his world as Sanderson was to Wheel of Time. He also expressed his belief that Martin does not intend for another author to finish the series and urged fans to support him in writing the remaining books.
Progress on The Winds of Winter
Fans have been eagerly anticipating the release of The Winds of Winter, the sixth novel in Martin's series, which has been in progress since before the publication of A Dance with Dragons in 2011. Martin himself described the book as "the curse of his life" in 2025. As of January of this year, Martin reported having completed over 1,000 pages, though no release date has been announced. The series is planned to conclude with a seventh book, titled A Dream of Spring, which is unlikely to be released this decade given the extended wait for the sixth installment.