Enlarge / Artist’s interpretation of today’s wishful thinking. (credit: Aurich Lawson / Getty / Henry Söderlund)

Everyone in search of a pandemic-based silver lining can head to author and producer George R.R. Martin’s blog, where the creator of the Song of Ice & Fire book series offers new hope for its next installment. Progress continues on The Winds of Winter, Martin insisted on Tuesday, and he’s dared to offer a hopeful estimate (though, obviously, not a release date).

“The enforced isolation has helped me write,” Martin wrote on his amusingly named “Not A Blog.” He confirms a flurry of progress in the past week, adding up to five chapters for Winds of Winter, and he points to “long hours every day” and “steady progress” in putting the book together.

Martin then mentions the cancellation of a New Zealand fan convention this year, which he admitted was, in some ways, a perfect development.