When I was 9 years old, I wrote a letter to Jim Davis to tell him how much I loved Garfield. I still remember getting a response back from him on his special stationary that looked like Garfield had taken a bite out of the corner. Well, times have changed and so have the letters that kids send to authors.
Jack B, a 13 year old fan of George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones series sent the author a letter asking if it would be possible to not only be a part of his next novel, but also to “He also asked if he could be part of the next novel: “A gruesome grizzly death is all I ask for.” The request caught Martin’s eye. Check out the boy’s letter and Martin’s response below:
Here’s Martins’ response:
Dear Jack,
Thank you so much for your heartfelt, touching note.
I’ve heard that you donated all your £153 pocket money savings to my Prizeo fundraiser on behalf of the Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary. I cannot tell you how much that moved me. It pleases me no end to know that my novels, and the TV series based on them, have inspired readers as young as yourself to rally to the support of these majestic and too often stigmatized animals
Alas, I cannot promise you a grisly death in THE WIND OF WINTER. Those spots have already been filled by some very generous donors, and there’s a limit to how many people even I can kill.
However, inspired by your example, my friends at Prizeo and I would love to follow your lead with a $10,000 in your name to the UK Wolf Conservation Trust. That’s a wonderful organization that I’ve heard much about, and they are lucky to count people like you as supporters.
I wish you the best of luck in your future career as a wolf conservationist, and hope that you inspire many others to follow your lead.
Yours,
GRRM