George R.R. Martin hopes "The Winds of Winter" will be done next year

Ah, here’s some news that will surely cheer up many bookworms (or at least not stir up strong anger within them).

George R.R. Martin is not only writing from seclusion — “an actual cabin in the mountains” — but he’s also predicting a release date (er, year) for The Winds of Winter.

His long-awaited sixth book in the Song of Ice and Fire series will hopefully be done, along with COVID-19, next year, Martin wrote on his blog.

That means, he said, that fans should disregard any rumors of the book coming out in the next weeks or months.

You can read more about the life of an isolated writer attempting to meet a massive fan base’s expectations during a massive health crisis on Martin’s blog.