''The Ice Dragon'' is a children's fantasy novelette by

George R. R. Martin George Raymond Richard Martin (born George Raymond Martin; September 20, 1948), also known as GRRM, is an American novelist, screenwriter, television producer and short story writer. He is the author of the series of epic fantasy novels ''A Song ...

, originally published in 1980 in the

Ace Books Ace Books is a publisher of science fiction (SF) and fantasy books founded in New York City in 1952 by Aaron A. Wyn. It began as a genre publisher of mysteries and westerns, and soon branched out into other genres, publishing its first scienc ...

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

Dragons of Light ''Dragons of Light'' (1980) is a fantasy fiction, fantasy anthology edited by American writer Orson Scott Card. Contents * "The Ice Dragon" by George R. R. Martin (Illustrated by Alicia Austin) * "The George Business" by Roger Zelazny (Ill ...

'', as illustrated by

Alicia Austin Alicia Austin (born 1942) is an American fantasy and science fiction artist and illustrator. She works in print-making, Prismacolor, pastels and watercolors. Early life and education Austin was born in Providence, Kentucky. As her father was c ...

. It was later included in Martin's 1987 collection '' Portraits of His Children'', as illustrated by Val Lakey Lindahn and Ron Lindahn. The story was reworked in 2007 with artwork by

Anne Yvonne Gilbert Anne Yvonne Gilbert (born 1950/1951) is a British artist and book illustrator. Her cover design of Frankie Goes To Hollywood's 1983 single "Relax" has been described as "one of the most famous record sleeves of all time". While much of her caree ...

, and again in 2014 with a series of original paintings by

Luis Royo Luis Royo (born 1954) is a Spanish artist. He is best known for his fantasy illustrations published in numerous art books, magazines such as '' Heavy Metal'' and various other media including book and music CD covers, video games and Tarot cards ...

. ''The Ice Dragon'', in translated form as ''El dragón de hielo'', won the 2004 Ignotus Award in Spain for best translated foreign short story; in 2005, it was nominated for a

Seiun Award The is a Japanese speculative fiction award given each year for the best science fiction works and achievements during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by , the awards are given at the annual Nihon SF Taikai, Japan Science Fict ...

in Japan for translated short story.

Plot

The novella follows the story of a young girl, Adara, who befriends an ice dragon after the death of her mother. Martin has stated on his

LiveJournal LiveJournal (russian: Живой Журнал), stylised as LiVEJOURNAL, is a Russian-owned social networking service where users can keep a blog, journal, or diary. American programmer Brad Fitzpatrick started LiveJournal on April 15, 1999, as ...

blog that ''The Ice Dragon'' is not set in the same world as

Westeros The fictional world in which the ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' novels by George R. R. Martin take place is divided into several continents, known collectively as The Known World. Most of the story takes place on the continent of Westeros and in a ...

of ''

A Song of Ice and Fire ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' is a series of epic fantasy novels by the American novelist and screenwriter George R. R. Martin. He began the first volume of the series, ''A Game of Thrones'', in 1991, and it was published in 1996. Martin, who init ...

'' fame, commenting: "The world of Ice & Fire did not exist when I wrote ''The Ice Dragon''". Despite this, several press releases, book covers and commentaries have claimed that it is set in the same world.

Film

On May 23, 2018,

Warner Animation Group The Warner Animation Group (WAG) is an American animation studio serving as the computer-animated feature film label of Warner Bros.' theatrical film production and distribution division, Warner Bros. Pictures. Established on January 7, 2013, th ...

acquired the rights to make a feature-length animated film based on the book, with Martin producing and his manager, Vince Geradis, as executive producer. On October 28, 2022, during a livestreamed interview moderated by author

David Anthony Durham David Anthony Durham (born March 23, 1969) is an American novelist, author of historical fiction and fantasy. Durham's first novel, ''Gabriel's Story'', centered on African American settlers in the American West. ''Walk Through Darkness'' fol ...

, Martin said that the adaptation would be going forward with Durham writing the screenplay.

References

Works by George R. R. Martin Books illustrated by Alicia Austin Books illustrated by Anne Yvonne Gilbert Books illustrated by Val Lakey Lindahn Books illustrated by Luis Royo {{1980s-fantasy-novel-stub