Ruling is hard. This was maybe my answer to Tolkien, whom, as much as I admire him, I do quibble with. Lord of the Rings had a very medieval philosophy: that if the king was a good man, the land would prosper. We look at real history and it's not that simple... Real-life kings had real-life problems to deal with...… — George R. R. Martin Copy Share
Of course it's not enough to be a good man to be an effective ruler and it never has been. — George R. R. Martin Copy Share Image
An awful lot of fantasy, and even some great fantasy, falls into the mistake of assuming that a good man will be… — George R. R. Martin Copy Share Image
Tolkien can say that Aragorn became king and reigned for a hundred years, and he was wise and good. But Tolkien doesn’t ask the question: What was Aragorn’s tax policy? Did he maintain a standing army? What did he do in times of flood and famine? And what about all these orcs? By the end of the war, Sauron is… — George R. R. Martin Copy Share
The best writing advice I had was [in] ‘Heinlein’s Rules for Writers’ by (American science fiction author) Robert A. Heinlein. His first rule is… — George R. R. Martin Copy Share Image
The true horrors of human history derive not from orcs and Dark Lords, but from ourselves. — George R. R. Martin Copy Share Image
That little touch is not in the books, but I wish it had been in the books because it was a great addition. — George R. R. Martin Copy Share Image
I always felt like Gandalf should have stayed dead. That was such an incredible sequence in Fellowship of the Ring when he faces the Balrog on the Khazad-dûm and he falls into the gulf, and his last words are, ‘Fly, you fools’. What power that had, how that grabbed me. And then he comes back as Gandalf the White, and… — George R. R. Martin Copy Share
“The title was but a courtesy due him as a council member; Varys was lord of nothing but the spiderweb, the master of none… — George R. R. Martin Copy Share Image
The girl had hoped for fog, but the gods ignored her prayers as gods so often did. — George R. R. Martin Copy Share Image
Over the years, more than one reviewer has described my fantasy series, 'A Song of Ice and Fire', as historical fiction about history that… — George R. R. Martin Copy Share Image
“Jaime had decided that he would return Sansa, and the younger girl as well if she could be found. It was not like to… — George R. R. Martin Copy Share Image
If the day comes when you would find me again, give that coin to any man from Braavos, and say these words to him--valar… — George R. R. Martin Copy Share Image
![“The best writing advice I had was [in] ‘Heinlein’s Rules for Writers’ by (American science fiction author) Robert A. Heinlein. His first rule is that you must write, and I was already doing that, but his second rule is, ‘You must finish what you write,’ and that had a big impact on me.” quote by George R. R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/14d/george-r-r-martin-2-926_advice_the-best-writing-advice-i-had-was-in-hei_51395.jpg)
