Just a quick update here for the curious.

Earlier this month, Bantam notified me that my illustration work for a forthcoming George R. R. Martin calendar for A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE will be released as a 2012 calendar, not a 2011, as first announced.

The good news is I’m cranking away on the work and it’s coming along. As GRRM fans know, HBO is producing a TV series based on the ASOIAF books. Basically, I was assigned a deadline and was rushing to get the calendar work done by that date. When the HBO series became official, Bantam decided they wanted a 2011 calendar even earlier than first assigned. They decided they now want the fans to have a calendar in time for San Diego Comic Con in July, which seems to make business sense, considering the new TV buzz, but I’m not sure that release date was their intention when they first hired me in late 2009.

So Bantam made a smart move and said “take your time and do a great calendar for 2012.” Ted Naismith had painted a set of illustrations that were waiting for a forthcoming GRRM project. My understanding is that those have been waiting to be officially published for a while. So Bantam has made the 2011 calendar a Naismith calendar that allows those illos to see the light of day, which is a good thing for Ted, I would think.

So in summary — Ted’s illos will be the 2011 calendar. Mine will be unveiled for the 2012 calendar. Bantam wins. The fans win. It’s good all around.

Now back to work on my 2012 calendar illos. 🙂