'Winds of Winter' release date, plot rumors: Did 'GOT' director confirm that the book is finished?

"A Song of Ice and Fire" Books 1 to 4 box set[Photo credit: George R.R. Martin website]

Will the world finally read the pages of George R.R. Martin's "The Winds of Winter"? 

There are new speculations surfacing that Martin is already done writing the sixth installment in his "A Song of Ice and Fire" book saga. This came about when "Game of Thrones" season 6 director Jack Bender seemingly revealed in his Reddit account that he already read an advanced copy of the book. 

One of Bender's followers asked him if he already read an advanced, unpublished "copy of Book 6 of Game of Thrones to prepare for directing next season's episodes," to which the director replied with a short "yes." 

Those who were following the conversation in the reported Reddit AMA immediately jumped to the conclusion that Bender's reply was a confirmation that Martin's highly anticipated novel is already finished. 

However, a report posted on the Watchers on The Wall fan site says that the director's response has been incorrectly interpreted, and Bender was referring to the season 6 script outline of the TV adaptation of the novels and not Martin's upcoming book. 

Martin previously mentioned that he will spend more time to complete the book, which is why he decided to cancel two convention appearances and several scheduled interviews. He also said that he will not write any episode for the HBO's TV adaptation so his focus will be on the novel. 

Jon Snow during the Game of Thrones season 5 finaleHBO

One of the reasons fans of both the TV and book series are eager to see the copy of "The Winds of Winter" is because they want to know the fate of Jon Snow. In both the "Game of Thrones" season 5 finale and the final chapter of "A Dance with Dragons," Snow was left for dead but his fate is still unclear. 

In the TV version, he was stabbed repeatedly by his own Night's Watch brothers because of his unpopular decision to talk to the Wildlings and ask for their help in the upcoming battle against the White Walkers. In the fifth book of the "ASOIF" series, he was stabbed multiple times when he headed south to help Stannis Baratheon's army and face Ramsay Bolton. 

Viewers and readers of Martin's works are hoping to get the answer when "The Winds of Winter" comes out, but the author has yet to reveal if he is already done writing it. Martin is reportedly hoping to have the book published before "Game of Thrones" season 6 premieres on HBO next year.