Here's a nice Q&A where GRRM answered some of the most frequent questions posed on Reddit. Be warned, while GRRM does avoid detailed and direct spoilers there is some spoilery info about the books beyond Season 1 Game of Thrones....
You might remember that a few days ago, Mr. Martin agreed to try to respond to the top 10 highest voted questions on /r/ASOIAF. That thread can still be found here. Tonight, Mr. Martin sent back his responses to our questions! Enjoy!
1) Is there anything (or a lot of things) you put in the previous books that you expected readers to pick up on, but no one (or very few people) did?
I suspect that the fans have picked up on everything by this point. With so many people reading the books, and sharing their thoughts on blogs and bulletin boards, even the most obscure clues soon are found and pointed out.
2) Will we get to see Valyria?
As it was before the Doom? As it is today?
Maybe.
3) Can you give us three unanswered questions that you expect will be answered in Winds?
I could, but I won't.
4) Is Bronn's storyline arc done? He was one of my favorite characters in the early books and in the T.V show but it seems like he came to a peak in A Feast for Crows and received no mention in A Dance with Dragons. Please keep Bronn going!
Bronn still has a part to play. He will definitely be back.
5) Has there been a character that you have given a reprieve to, or maybe deviated from the >path you originally were going to send them on? If so, whom?
No, not really.
In some cases the chronologies have diverged from what I originally intended, but the overall character arcs remain the same.
6) Did writing about Reek disturb you as much as it did for us to read about him?
Those chapters were certainly challenging to write, but I would not say they disturbed me. The challenge was to find ways to disturb my readers, while still keeping the character psychologically true.
7) Do you feel like HBO is putting pressure on you to finish the last two books of the series? Does this have any effect on your creative output?
No and no.
It would not matter if they did. No one could more pressure on me than I put on myself.
8) Provided the Ironmen had not attacked the North and the Red Wedding had not taken place, would/could the North and Riverlands have survived as an independent kingdom?
The north, perhaps. The riverlands are more problematic. With no real natural boundaries, the riverlands are vulnerable to attack from all sides, which is why their history has been so full of blood and tumult.
9) What would you say is the biggest red herring that we the fans picked up that you did not intend to be a red herring?
That would be telling. But the fans have spun a few theories out of thin air. They email me about them from time to time.
10) In regard to the intricate, wonderful and probably very frustrating plot skein you've woven: do you think that you're "over the hump" so to speak, or will the books get progressively more complex to write each time?
I certainly hope I am over the hump, but I have given up making predictions. Whenever I do, I get burned. I am still juggling an awful lot of balls. Maybe too many, but having tossed them in the air, I feel obliged to juggle on.
best,
George R.R. Martin
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