George R.R. Martin fears readers will hate 'The Winds of Winter', not doing a cameo in 'House of the Dragon'

George R.R. Martin revealed that he still working on "The Winds of Winter," the highly-anticipated sixth instalment of the epic fantasy book series titled "A Song of Ice and Fire," during a San Diego Comic-Con panel for "House of the Dragon."

The veteran author also shared he would not make a cameo on the much-awaited prequel about the Targaryen civil war until he completes writing "The Winds of Winter." In response to a fan's question about a possible "House of the Dragon" appearance, GRRM said, "For the last couple years since COVID hit, I've barely left my house.

He added, "Also, you may not know this, but there's this book I'm writing and it's a little late. So I won't be doing any acting until I finish and deliver that book and if the show is still running then then maybe."

It has been more than a decade since "A Dance with Dragons," the fifth book of the book series, hit the bookshelves. Luckily, George R.R. Martin has been religiously providing fans updates about the status of "The Winds of Winter" on his blog and in various panels and interviews.

Earlier this month, GRRM penned on his blog, "Most of you know by now that I do not like to give detailed updates on WINDS. I am working on it, I have been working on it, I will continue to work on it. (Yes, I work on other things as well)." The author furthered, "I love nothing more than to surprise my readers with twists and turns they did not see coming, and I risk losing those moments if I go into too much detail. Spoilers, you know."

George R.R. Martin also divulged that his writing took him "further and further away from the television series." Though there might be some elements from the final seasons in the books, he said it would be "quite different."

The brain behind the successful "Game of Thrones" saga admitted that he fears readers would hate "The Winds of Winter" since it is taking him forever to finish the novel. GRRM wrote, "I do fear that a certain proportion of fans are so angry about how long WINDS has taken me that they are prepared to hate the book, unread. That saddens me, but there nothing I can do about it, but write the best book that I can, and hope that when it comes out most fans will read it with clean hands and an open mind."

Meanwhile, the "House of the Dragon" is set to premiere on Aug. 21, 2022, on HBO. For starters, the ten-episode "Game of Thrones" spin-off centres on how the House of Targaryen fell into a bitter and brutal civil war known as the "Dance of the Dragons."