'Game Of Thrones' Author George R.R. Martin Gives $5 Million To Northwestern University

EVANSTON, IL — Author George R.R. Martin has pledged a pair of donations totaling $5 million to Northwestern University.

Martin is the author of the "A Song of Ice and Fire" series of fantasy novels, which have been adapted into the "Game of Thrones" and "House of the Dragon" television shows.

He received a bachelor's of science from Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism in 1970 and a master's a year later. Last year, university officials awarded Martin an honorary doctorate from what has since been rebranded as the Medill School of Journalism, Media and Integrated Marketing Communications.

Martin, a New Jersey native, sold his first comic while at Northwestern. After graduating, he obtained conscientious objector status and avoided being drafted into the Vietnam War. He spent the next two years as alternate service working on legal assistance in Chicago, using his journalism background for public relations before launching his writing career.

“George R.R. Martin is a prolific and iconic author with an international audience,” Michael Schill, Northwestern's president, said in a statement. “We are so grateful for his generosity to his alma mater, which will inspire and equip the next generation of storytellers at Northwestern.”

According to university officials, Martin will give $3 million to establish a summer intensive writing workshop for journalism professionals looking to launch creative writing careers. The workshop is expected to enroll six to eight authors every summer, starting in 2024.

The remaining $2 million will be used to set up an endowed professorship. The George R.R. Martin Chair in Storytelling will lead the George R.R. Martin Summer Intensive Writing Workshop and teach writing courses to undergrads and grad students ranging from narrative nonfiction to creative writing.

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“The George R.R. Martin Chair in Storytelling and the Summer Intensive Writing Workshop will enable us to recruit, retain and host recognized authors and storytellers for the benefit of Northwestern students and writers from around the country,” said Medill Dean Charles Whitaker. “These initiatives will help aspiring writers across myriad literary genres to make their mark on the world, as George has done.”

Martin's time in Evanston is not the only North Shore "Game of Thrones" connection. Highland Park High School grad Dan "D.B." Weiss is the co-creator of the eight-season Emmy Award-winning HBO series.