How George R. R. Martin came up with Game of Thrones’ first chapter

In the creative process of crafting the iconic Game of Thrones book series, George R. R. Martin found inspiration in a single scene that captured his imagination—the first chapter. In a video interview, Martin shared how the scene of the stark children finding direwolf pups came to him, captivating his imagination. Martin’s realization of the vividness and authenticity of the characters compelled him to delve deeper into the world they inhabited.

The Iconic First Chapter

In an interview with 60 Minutes, Martin described how he wrote the first chapter of the book:

“Just one day, the first chapter of Game of Thrones came to me—the scene where they find the dire wolf pups in the summer snows.

(Interviewer) That was the first scene that you wrote?

That was the first scene that I wrote, yet that scene came to me, and I wrote it in like three days.”

Martin was then asked a follow-up question regarding what specifically “struck” him about that scene, and he answered:

“It was a scene that haunted me. The characters seemed so real. I knew right from the beginning; I mean that first sentence, they find the direwolf pups in the summer snows. I knew they were the summer snows, so this was a place where it snowed even in summer, so what could result (in) that?”

Martin continued, describing how that scene led to the creation of the world of Game of Thrones:

“And you know, wheels started turning. How would, what kind of world would have that, where these people live? What does the rest of the kingdom look like? And the world-building grew parallel to the story.”

As Martin delved deeper into the story, he realized the need for world-building. He created references to past kings and eventually compiled a list of Targaryen Kings, their names, and their reigns to maintain consistency in his storytelling.

Martin has obviously come a long way, creating a series of novels that fans love.

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