George R.R. Martin wants his fans to know that he’s OK.
The fantasy novelist whose A Song of Ice and Fire books inspired the hit HBO show Game of Thrones wrote on his blog that he’s feeling fine.
“For those of you who may be concerned for me personally… yes, I am aware that I am very much in the most vulnerable population, given my age and physical condition,” he wrote. “But I feel fine at the moment, and we are taking all sensible precautions. I am off by myself in a remote isolated location, attended by one of my staff, and I’m not going into town or seeing anyone.”
Martin wrote that Meow Wolf, the Santa Fe art collective where he works as “chief world builder,” has temporarily shuttered. He’s also closed his Jean Cocteau Cinema. “I prefer to err on the side of caution, so we’re shutting down the theatre until April 15, at which time we will take stock and re-evaluate,” he wrote. “Our intent is to keep the theatre closed until the relevant authorities tell us that it is safe to reopen.”
His bookstore, Beastly Books, remains open, at least for the time being. “We have stocked the store with disinfectants and sanitizers, and we will be carefully monitoring the situation going forward,” he wrote. “If it seems best to shut the bookstore too, we will do that.”
“Let us hope we all come through this safe and sound,” he concluded. “Stay well, my friends. Better to be safe than sorry.”
At the bottom of the post, he wrote: “Current mood: stressed.”
Michael Schaub is a Texas-based journalist and regular contributor to NPR.