George R.R. Martin says he fears \u201cthe worst may be yet to come\u201d as he opened up about the personal challenges that ran parallel to a year of professional highs.<\/p>\n
The fantasy author, who created the world of HBO series \u201cGame of Thrones,\u201d said in a post published to his website on Monday<\/a> that he has \u201cbattled sadness and depression\u201d amid a \u201cstressful\u201d and \u201coverwhelming\u201d year of some exciting endeavors, \u201cdreams coming true\u201d and \u201cnightmares.\u201d In his blog post, his first since February, Martin wrote that he has lost friends \u2014 he did not provide names \u2014 and briefly mused on aging: \u201cI turned seventy-seven last September, and I tell you, getting old is no fun.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBut there have been amazing times as well,\u201d he continued, \u201cI suppose that\u2019s just life. Of course, I knew that.\u201d<\/p>\n Martin, who is writing his long-awaited book \u201cThe Winds of Winter,\u201d said he has fallen behind on blog entries and intends to get readers up to speed, \u201cbut my posts are likely to [be] short and rushed.\u201d The author also highlighted the recent critical success of HBO\u2019s \u201cKnight of the Seven Kingdoms,\u201d also adapted from his work. While he acknowledged the drama\u2019s nine Emmy nominations, \u201cincluding the big one, Best Drama,\u201d Martin also noted that his attendance at the upcoming Emmy Awards in September \u201cdepends…on, well a lot of things.\u201d<\/p>\n His latest post rings similar to another entry he shared in March 2018<\/a>, when he reveled in \u201clots of exciting things going on\u201d but also shared with followers that he is \u201cburied in work, so much that it is starting to overwhelm me.\u201d He announced at the time he would be taking a break from writing his posts. <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ll return eventually,\u201d he said in 2018, \u201cJust don\u2019t know when.\u201d <\/p>\n Martin has faced seemingly endless questions about the status of \u201cThe Winds of Winter\u201d and his ability to complete the planned sixth novel in his \u201cA Song of Ice and Fire\u201d series that inspired the hit HBO drama \u201cGame of Thrones,\u201d for more than a decade. He tried to shut down those concerns in 2014. <\/p>\n \u201cI find that question pretty offensive, frankly, when people start speculating about my death and my health,\u201d he told a Swiss newspaper at the time<\/a>. <\/p>\n