George R.R. Martin has updated his “Not a Blog” with a new post catching up on what’s going on of late. Of course, with the recent release of the teaser for HBO’s adaption, that heads off the list. He notes casting continues for many roles, and amusingly complains about having invented so many characters. Roles mentioned are, “Mycah, Janos Slynt, Gendry, Tobho Mott, Old Nan, Shagga, Syrio, Marillion, Doreah, Alliser Thorne, Grenn, Pyp, Rast, Osha..:” He also states that Nina Gold, the casting director, is finding some great choices, and the work continues for those who they have not quite settled on.
In other news, GRRM states that the cross-genre anthology he’s editing with Gardner Dozois, Down These Strange Streets, looks likely to be deliverable to the publisher in a month. “Kong”—A Dance with Dragons—on the other hand continues to be a battle. He states he’s been working on the epilogue, not entirely satisfactorily, before switching to rewriting a Tyrion chapter which has gone much better. He cautions that just because he was writing the epilogue does not mean he is done—he often writes chapters out of order.
Finally, he mentions forthcoming appearances: the Clarion writer’s workshop in San Diego in July, a signing at Mysterious Galaxy, but San Diego Comic-con is not likely to happen ... On the other hand, New York Comic-con in October seems a likely bet, according to George. And why not? As the east coast’s answer to SDCC, it’d be an excellent venue for a panel and full-blown promotion for HBO’s new series, as well as the various comic book properties being developed based on his work…