George R.R. Martin Quotes

She was no stranger to waiting, after all. Her man had always made her wait.

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 morghulis.

The man is as useless as nipples on a breastplate.

The great thing about reading is that it broadens your life

I know who's going to be on the throne [in the Gameof Thrones], at the end, so I better not say. But, there will be a few people sitting on it, before the end.

Minds are like swords, I do fear. The old ones go to rust.

I've been many kinds of writers in my career: novelist; tele-playwright; short story writer. As a high-school student, I wrote amateur pieces for fanzines, and I've written for Hollywood.

Kill me, and be cursed. You are no king of mine.

I just need to rest, that’s all, to rest and sleep some, and maybe die a little.

Any act can be a prayer, if done as well as we are able.

I think life is a jape. Yours, mine, everyone's

I'm fond of all my characters so every time one doesn't make the cut I'm a little disappointed although I understand it.

One of the hardest parts of writing is writing from the gut or the heart or something like that rather than intellectually.

You can't just pick people for their hair color or the shape of their face. You have to go with the best actors.

I think my very earliest stories were all intellectual exercises and I was writing from experiences I had never had about characters who were about an inch deep.

Why do our dreams become so much smaller when they finally come true?

Kind? How boring that would be. I aspire to be wicked.

I know nothing and perhaps I never will.

And the mystery knight should defeat all challengers and name the wolf maid the queen of love and beauty.

I've written some standalone novels, but a book series allows fans in. There's much more intense involvement.

Why ask for truth," Ser Barristan said softly, "if you close your ears to it?

Of course it’s not enough to be a good man to be an effective ruler and it never has been.

Choosing... it has always hurt. And always will. I know.

The morning air was dark with the smoke of burning gods.

A sweet face oft hides a sinner's heart.

Truly, sister, you were born to be a widow. (Tyrion to Cersei)

It is better to be seen as cruel than foolish.

Sure. Some of the reviews have been very flattering, but the series is not finished yet. The end needs to be as strong as the beginning.

I knew a man once who told me that I smiled at the wrong things." "Do you? "Only by the light of those who smile at nothing.

It had been more of a wish, actually, but it sounded better to call it a dream.

Catelyn wanted to run to him, to kiss his sweet brow, to wrap him in her arms so tightly that he would never come to harm.

Sleep is a little death, dreams the whisperings of the Other, who would drag us all into his eternal night.

Jon lied ... loudly, as if that could make it true.

...Ned always said that the man who passes the sentence should swing the blade, though he never took any joy in the duty. But I would, oh, yes.

The choice is yours, brother. Live a thrall or die a king. Do you dare to fly? Unless you take the leap, you’ll never know." - Euron Greyjoy

Eat your heart out, Rowling. Maybe you have billions of dollars and my Hugo, but you don't have readers like these.

We only make peace with our enemies. That's why it's called making peace.

The most important thing for any aspiring writer, is to read! And not just the sort of thing you're trying to write, be that fantasy, SF, comic books, whatever. You need to read everything.

Jon: Have you seen the wall? | Sam: I'm fat, not blind.

Men see what they expect to see.

When you have known the kiss of a flaying knife, a laugh loses all its power to hurt you.

I am loyal to my beloved Joffrey. (Sansa) No doubt. As loyal as a deer surrounded by wolves. (Tyrion) Lions, she whispered without thinking.

The women are the strong ones, truly.

They hate you because you act like you're better than they are

If the novels are still being read in 50 years, no one is ever going to say: 'What's great about that sixth book is that he met his deadline!' It will be about how the whole thing stands up.

A bear! A bear! All black and brown and covered in hair!

Will you make a song for him?' the woman asked. 'He has a song,' the man replied. 'He is the prince that was promised, and his is the song of ice and fire.

It was a story called ‘The Hero’ which I sold to Galaxy magazine in 1970, for $94.

Better to mock the game than to play and lose.

If you die before you say her name, ser, I will hunt you through all seven hells.