Until June of last year, I had no experience with George R.R. Martin's series A Song of Ice and Fire. Like many, the ongoing HBO series was my first exposure to Martin's acclaimed works. Since then, I've become captivated by every facet of it. I've read each of the books and novellas, spent hours arguing on message boards, and very nearly tattooed a dire wolf sigil on my arm. It's a series that is easy to fall in love with, yet difficult to put down. It's what I imagine Martin would want from any new fan.

So, when "Not everyone likes my books" is a response I receive from the author during a recent interview, you can imagine my fanboyish disbelief.

With the second season of the award-winning television adaptation premiering this past Sunday, Martin has been spending his days on an international promotional tour. He's tired, he feels overbooked, and he has mountains of work yet to do before returning to writing the series that has brought him recent success.

And in May, a new video game based on the series will be released. Translating the first book, A Game of Thrones, from words on a page into lines of code.