Here’s hoping that all my friends and readers out there had a wonderful holiday. I hope that Santa Claus was kind to you, and that neither Krampus nor Nackles turned up at your door with a big black bag.
We had a good Christmas here in Santa Fe.
One of the highlights was our annual Fevre River Packet Company holiday dinner.
The merry minions are, L to R, Lenore, Elias, Sid, Raya, and Andrea. (Amy and Sarah were unable to make it).
I’m Gru, of course.
Current Mood: 
happy
The new year is almost at hand, and with it will come all manner of new television shows, on network, cable, and streamers.
I have got to confess, I was chuffed to read that the most anticipated new show, according to IMDB, was…
(drum roll, please)
HOUSE OF THE DRAGON!
https://movieweb.com/house-of-the-dragon-imdb-most-anticipated-original-tv-series-2022/
That’s a hell of a list to be at the top of, too. Amazon’s new Tolkien series? Neil Gaiman’s SANDMAN? Marvel shows? STAR WARS shows?
Good company.
I am anticipating HOUSE OF THE DRAGON pretty eagerly myself, for what it’s worth. Okay, I am hardly objective. And I know a lot of what you will be seeing. (I, um, wrote the book). Also … mum’s the word now, don’t tell anyone… I’ve seen a rough cut of the first episode. And loved it. It’s dark, it’s powerful, it’s visceral… just the way I like my epic fantasy.
Ryan and Miguel have done an amazing job, and the cast… just as with GAME OF THRONES, most viewers will only have heard of a few of the actors, but I think you are going to fall in love with a lot of them. (Only to have your heart broken later when… but no, that would be telling).
I think the Targaryens are in very good hands.
Anticipate away. I do not think you will be disappointed.
Current Mood: 
excited
Just wanted to share the new promotional trailer we put together for Santa Fe’s SKY Railway.
Tickets are on sale now on the Sky website. Sunlight Serenade train, Santa and Pablito, Exodus Express, Murder on the Lamy Line… and many more to come in the new year.
Current Mood: 
cheerful
Xmas is almost upon us.
Books make wonderful gifts, you kn0w. Especially AUTOGRAPHED books, which are also collectibles.
And Beastly Books has hundreds of signed books… my own work, of course, plus a huge range of titles from the writers who have visited Santa Fe and the Jean Cocteau since 2013. Hardcovers, paperbacks, SF, fantasy, thrillers, mystery, history, romance, you name it.
Browse our offerings at https://www.beastlybooks.com/
Our staff is waiting to help you.
Current Mood: 
geeky
A few years back, Hidetaka Miyazaki and his incredible team of game designers, the creators of the DARK SOULS videogame series, reached out from Japan to ask me to help them create the backstory and history for a new game they were working on. Now, video games are not really my thing — oh, I played a few back in the dawn of time, mainly strategy games like RAILROAD TYCOON, ROMANCE OF THE THREE KINGDOMS, and MASTER OF ORION — but this offer was too exciting to refuse. Miyazaki and his team from FromSoftware were doing groundbreaking stuff with gorgeous art, and what they wanted from me was just a bit of worldbuilding: a deep, dark, resonant world to serve as a foundation for the game they planned to create. And as it happens, I love creating worlds and writing imaginary history.
So I did my bit, and handed off to my new friends in Japan, and they took it from there. And years passed. Videogames are as big as movies these days (bigger, actually)… and take just as long to create.
But the day of ELDEN RING is finally at hand.
And I’ve got to say, it looks incredible.
ELDEN RING will be released on February 25, 2022.
Current Mood: 
enthralled
We wrapped principal photography on NIGHT OF THE COOTERS back in August, you may recall. That’s our adaptation of the classic short story by the one and only Howard Waldrop. Shot entirely in greenscreen in Santa Fe, from a screenplay by Joe Lansdale. Directed by Vincent d’Onofrio, who also starred. After that we turned it over to the wizards at Trioscope, who have been busily working on it ever since with their groundbreaking animation process.
They’re still working. It’s our hope to have a finished film by February, maybe March.
Meanwhile, though, we did put together a short teaser trailer for COOTERS. We debuted it in Montreal at the World Fantasy Con, where Howard received the Lifetime Achievement Award. And we screened it again during the Trioscope panel at the recent San Diego Comicon (which Vincent and I joined via Zoom).
And now we can share it with all of you.
Enjoy.
The Cooters are Coming!
Current Mood: excited
The sky has officially opened, as of December 3, and Pablito the dragon has arrived in Santa Fe.
(I told you he was coming).
You can read all about him in SANTA’S DRAGON, the new Christmas classic written by bestselling author Douglas Preston and illustrated by Raya Golden.
There’s a lovely review in PASATIEMPO:
Signed copies are now available from Beastly Books via mailorder, and in Santa Fe from the Sky Store down by REI.
(Be advised, this is a kid’s book. Do not confuse Pablito with Balerion the Black Dread).
Current Mood: cheerful
THE GREAT is insane… and insanely good.
The second season came started streaming recently, and Parris and I have binged the whole thing. I would not recommend the series as a way to pass your course in Russian history, mind you. Certain… ahem… liberties have been taken. But as entertainment, we love it. It is funny, exciting, full of twists and turns and an amazing cast of characters. And bawdy. Very very bawdy. You thought there was a lot of sex in GAME OF THRONES? Hoo hah. The dialogue is sharp, witty, often laugh out loud hilarious, and the cast… there are a LOT of fine actors in this one, but I have to single out Nicholas Hoult. His take on Tsar Peter III is a delight… and it still boggles me when I remind myself that this is the same guy who played J.R.R. T0lkien so well in TOLKIEN. That’s some range.
HUZZAH!
I have no idea where they can possibly go third season… though likely not where history went.
Current Mood: 
amused
We’ve worked with Nnedi Okorafor a few times now and consider her a true friend and talented author.
So when she asked that we help spread the word for her family’s gofundme page we were happy to help out.
Please take a look and consider donating.
ON BEHALF OF THE OKORAFOR FAMILY:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/a-future-for-chinedu
This message has been brought to you by the Minions of Fevre River.
It’s finally time to open the doors officially for Santa Fe Sky Railway, and we’re all proud as punch about it!
It was a hard road but well worth it when we finally get to see the train pull up to Santa Fe station for the first time, come check us out down at the Santa Fe railway to find out more about what rides are available and what’s coming next year.
Come on down and check out our fabulous engines the Wolf and the Dragon and set up your next railway experience!
Tickets now available for Pablito’s Christmas Train and the Exodus Experience.
https://www.facebook.com/SkyRailway/
This message has been brought to you by the Minions of Fevre River.
This blog is the only place for official communication from George R.R. Martin. For press inquiries, please contact David Moench
