LOS ANGELES, CA – SEPTEMBER 17: (Editor’s note: Image has been converted to black and white.) Writer George R. R. Martin, winner of Outstanding Drama Series for ‘Game of Thrones’, attends IMDb LIVE After The Emmys 2018 on September 17, 2018 in Los Angeles, California.. (Photo by Rich Polk/Getty Images for IMDb)

If there has been a Game of Thrones shaped hole in your heart ever since the 2019 finale, then news that George R R Martin has signed a five year deal with HBO should ease the pain.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the reclusive author has put pen to paper on a deal worth eight-figures. The mega-deal sees Martin offer a slate of new programming for HBO and its streaming service, HBO Max.

Since Game of Thrones wrapped on HBO in 2019, bringing an end to one of the most succesful TV series of all time. Since then, Martin has continued to develop projects based on his A Song of Ice and Fire fantasy world.

George R R Martin first rose to mainstream prominence when HBO signed a deal to adapt his A Song of Ice and Fire novels to HBO in 2007. The shift from page to the screen would prove enormously rewarding for both Martin and HBO, with Game of Thrones becoming the biggest TV show globally.

In its eight-season run on HBO, Game of Thrones won countless Emmy and Golden Globe awards while transforming a primarily unknown cast into household names. The 2019 finale was one of the most streamed episodes of all time, with 13.6 million viewers on the live HBO channel. It remains the most-watched HBO show of all time.

Details on what the new deal covers off are scarce, but we can expect more of the same from the author given Martin’s current slate.

SAN DIEGO, CA – JULY 25: (L-R) Moderator Craig Ferguson, writer/producer D.B. Weiss, writer/producer David Benioff, actors Pedro Pascal, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Gwendoline Christie, Rory McCann, Maisie Williams, writer/creator George R.R. Martin, Natalie Dormer, Sophie Turner, Kit Harington, Rose Leslie and John Bradley attend HBO’s “Game of Thrones” Panel during Comic-Con 2014 on July 25, 2014 in San Diego, California. (Photo by FilmMagic/FilmMagic)

Fans of Game of Thrones won’t have to wait too long for their fix of swashbuckling fantasy as there are currently several Game of Thrones spin-off projects in development at HBO.

There’s a series revolving around Nymeria of House Martell, a show that will take place in King’s Landing’s Flea Bottom slum, a series with a working title of 9 Voyages that will follow House Velaryon’s Lord Corlys Velaryon, aka The Sea Snake, and a series based on Martin’s Dunk and Egg novellas.

An animated GoT series has also been rumoured.

In the immediate future, we can look forward to House of Dragon. The GoT prequel series that has been greenlit by HBO, House of Dragon, will focus on the House Targaryen and is set ​​​​​​​300 years before the events of GoT​​​​​​​ took place.