George R.R. Martin Shares What Will and Won’t Be the Focus of HBO’s Possible Game of Thrones Spinoffs

George R.R. Martin, one of the few people who can make mature adults completely geek out, gave fans more details on HBO’s possible Game of Thrones spinoffs currently in the early stages of development.

Last month we learned HBO had begun the the process of developing multiple spinoffs for the fantasy series, no doubt an attempt to hold on to the massive hit the series has become as it goes into its final season. According to Variety, four writers were hired by HBO to work on separate possible spinoffs: Max Borenstein (Godzilla), Jane Goldman (Kingsman: The Secret Service), Brian Helgeland (Mystic River) and Carly Wray (Mad Men).

Last night, Martin shared another update on his LiveJournal about the potential spinoffs, including the addition of another, unnamed writer bumping the number of pilot scripts being produced to five.

Martin shied away from calling the developments “spinoffs” himself, claiming these stories will function separately from the plot of A Song of Ice and Fire, the book series Thrones is based on.

The author went on to dispel the speculation around the new spinoffs by shooting down every major theory fans have. The show(s) will definitely not follow his Dunk and Egg novellas, as he claims he has many more to write, nor will any be based on Robert’s Rebellion, the conflict that set the stage for A Song of Ice and Fire, because “by the time I finish writing A Song of Ice and fire, you will know every important thing that happened in Robert’s Rebellion.”

Lastly, Martin wrote that every concept currently being discussed is a prequel, meaning fans will not get to see more adventures involving their favorite characters, but will instead get new stories and characters from Westeros and beyond.

Game of Thrones returns to HBO on July 16 for its penultimate seventh season. Find Paste’s predictions for how the series will end here—some of our takes have aged more gracefully than others.