George R.R. Martin Reveals New Details About Those Game of Thrones Spin-Offs

Two weeks after the exciting news dropped that Game of Thrones could be getting the spin-off treatment four times over, some additional details on the potential shows-to-be were released by the one man who knows Westeros better than anyone: author George R.R. Martin.

In a lengthy post on his blog, Martin discussed the spin-offs in development -- beginning with the part where he really doesn't like the term "spin-off."

"None of these new shows will be 'spinning off' from GoT in the traditional sense... where characters from one show continue on to another," Martin wrote. "So all of you who were hoping for the further adventures of Hot Pie are doomed to disappointment. Every one of the concepts under discussion is a prequel, rather than a sequel. Some may not even be set on Westeros."

Martin also revealed that he's involved with all the scripts, not just two of them as originally reported, and also that another idea has been added into the mix. That brings the number of series being considered for development up to five -- though the author declined to reveal the name of the new writer on board, who will likely be announced through official HBO channels whenever his contract is inked. In the meantime, it sounds like the process of polishing these scripts has been a lot of fun for those involved, as Martin described the productive (and tequila-fueled) meetings he's had with his collaborators.

"Every one of the four has visited me here in Santa Fe, some of them more than once, and we've spent days together discussing their ideas, the history of Westeros and the world beyond, and sundry details found only in The World of Ice & Fire and The Lands of Ice & Fire... when we weren't drinking margaritas and eating chile rellenos and visiting Meow Wolf," he wrote.

Perhaps anticipating the grumbling of fans, Martin concluded his post with an all-caps assurance that he is still continuing to work on the long-awaited, much-delayed The Winds of Winter, the sixth novel in the series on which Game of Thrones is based... although it's hard to imagine how he'll find the time.

Game of Thrones will return to HBO for its seventh season on Sunday, July 16, at 9/8c.