One of the things I wanted to do with A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE was to make it a little more "real" than most high fantasy. I drew much of my inspiration from history and historical fiction, and immersed myself in the Middle Ages before I began writing. Patriarchy was as much as part of medieval society as feudalism, faith, or swords.

I have created other fictional worlds that are more sexually egalitarian -- try my novel WINDHAVEN, written with Lisa Tuttle.

With ICE AND FIRE, however, I preferred to stay closer to my historical models.