Editing A Song of Ice and Fire (section)

===Genre===
{{further|Themes in A Song of Ice and Fire}}
{{Quote box | quote="[Martin's ''Ice and Fire'' series] was groundbreaking (at least for me) in all kinds of ways. Above all, the books were extremely unpredictable, especially in a genre where readers have come to expect the intensely predictable. [...] ''A Game of Thrones'' was profoundly shocking when I first read it, and fundamentally changed my notions about what could be done with epic fantasy." | source =—Fantasy writer [[Joe Abercrombie]] in 2008<ref name=joeabercrombie/> | width =250px | align =right}}
George R. R. Martin believes the most profound influences to be the ones experienced in childhood.<ref name=deepmagic41/> Having read [[H. P. Lovecraft]], [[Robert E. Howard]], [[Robert A. Heinlein]], [[Eric Frank Russell]], [[Andre Norton]],<ref name=grmm_iv_weirdtm/> [[Isaac Asimov]],<ref name=fantasyonline/> [[Fritz Leiber]], and [[Mervyn Peake]]<ref name=grrm_iv_sfsite2/> in his youth, Martin never categorized these authors' literature into science fiction, fantasy, or horror and will write from any genre as a result.<ref name=deepmagic41/> Martin classified ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' as "[[epic fantasy]]",<ref name=guardian_barbarians/> and specifically named [[Tad Williams]]' high fantasy epic ''[[Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn]]'' as very influential for the writing of the series.<ref name=fantasyonline/><ref name=grrm_iv_sfsite2/> One of his favorite authors is [[Jack Vance]],<ref name=fantasyonline/> although Martin considered the series not particularly Vancean.<ref name=grrm_iv_infinityplus/>

Martin experienced some harsh winters when living in [[Dubuque]] a few years in the 1970s, and suspects these winters had an influence on his writing: "I think a lot of the stuff in ''A Game of Thrones'', the snow and ice and freezing, comes from my memories of Dubuque".<ref name=vanityfair_catchup/>

The medieval setting has been the traditional background for epic fantasy. However, where historical fiction leaves versed readers knowing the historical outcome,<ref name=grrm_iv_sfsite2/> original characters may increase suspense and empathy for the readers.<ref name=deepmagic41/> Yet Martin felt historical fiction, particularly when set during the Middle Ages, had an excitement, grittiness, and a realness to it that was absent in fantasy with a similar backdrop.<ref>[http://njmonthly.com/articles/lifestyle/NJM-Q-and-A/qa-with-george-rr-martin.html Q&A With George R.R. Martin] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140619182600/http://njmonthly.com/articles/lifestyle/NJM-Q-and-A/qa-with-george-rr-martin.html |date=June 19, 2014 }}</ref> Thus, he wanted to combine the realism of historical fiction with the magic appeal of the best fantasies,<ref name=time_grrm_ivp2/> subduing magic in favor of battles and political intrigue.<ref name=grrm_iv_januarymagazine/> He also decided to avoid the conventional good versus evil setting typical for the genre, using the fight between Achilles and Hector in [[Homer]]'s ''[[Iliad]]'', where no one stands out as either a hero or a villain, as an example of what he wants to achieve with his books.<ref name="adriasnews">{{cite web |url=http://www.adriasnews.com/2012/10/george-r-r-martin-interview.html |title=Adria's News: George R.R. Martin: "Trying to please everyone is a horrible mistake" |publisher=adriasnews.com |access-date=October 2, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170802120426/http://www.adriasnews.com/2012/10/george-r-r-martin-interview.html |archive-date=August 2, 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Martin is widely credited with broadening the fantasy fiction genre for adult content.<ref name=newyorker/> Writing for ''[[The Atlantic]]'', Amber Taylor assessed the novels as [[hard fantasy]] with vulnerable characters to which readers become emotionally attached.<ref name=atlantic_brutal/> [[CNN]] found in 2000 that Martin's mature descriptions were "far more frank than those found in the works of other fantasy authors",<ref name=cnn/> although Martin assessed the fantasy genre to have become rougher-edged a decade later and that some writers' work was going beyond the mature themes of his novels.<ref name=indigo_iv1/> [[Adam Roberts (British writer)|Adam Roberts]] called Martin's series the most successful and popular example of the emerging subgenre of [[grimdark]] fantasy.<ref name="Roberts 2014">{{cite book|last1=Roberts|first1=Adam|title=Get Started in: Writing Science Fiction and Fantasy|date=2014|publisher=Hachette UK|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T2rEAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT42|isbn=9781444795660|page=42|access-date=January 31, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150522033232/https://books.google.com/books?id=T2rEAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT42|archive-date=May 22, 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>