Forget dragons and dire wolves. In George R.R. Martin‘s corner of the realm — otherwise known as Santa Fe, New Mexico — power looks more like a movie theater, a short-haul railway line, a bookstore and a bar. And while winter may not be coming anytime soon, a surprising number of business ventures are.

Over the past decade, the 76-year-old Game of Thrones creator has been building his own offscreen empire — a quirky, culture-loving kingdom in northern New Mexico, where he owns or funds a growing number of institutions. There’s the Jean Cocteau Cinema, the beloved art house theater he rescued in 2013. There’s Meow Wolf, the psychedelic art collective he helped fund (and house, in an old abandoned bowling alley). And there’s the historic Santa Fe Southern Railway, which he’s not only brought back to life but turned into something of a movie star.

Martin may have left Westeros unfinished, but in this sunbaked enclave, his world-building continues apace — one real estate acquisition at a time.

“I fell in love with Santa Fe when I first visited in 1978 — you can get in a car and get anywhere in 10 minutes,” he’s said. A year later, newly divorced and ready to write full-time, Martin left his teaching job at Clarke College in Dubuque, Iowa, and relocated to the high desert, where he would start hammering out his epic saga about dragons, dynasties and deeply questionable family trees — the one that would make him Santa Fe’s most famous scribe.

In 2013, he purchased the Jean Cocteau Cinema — a long-closed, single-screen movie house in the city’s Railyard District — which he reopened as a venue for film screenings, author events and game nights. Then, right next door, he opened Beastly Books, offering sci-fi and fantasy titles, rare editions and plenty of GRRM swag. Tucked just behind it is Milk of the Poppy, a medieval apothecary-themed cocktail bar. All three are owned by Martin’s Highgarden Entertainment.

In true Martin fashion, things only got more sprawling. He bought a shuttered bowling alley on the south side of town — a steal at $2.7 million — and turned it over to what he called “a group of young, weird-ass Santa Fe artists.” Those weirdos would go on to become the founding collective behind Meow Wolf, now a national immersive art phenomenon. “None of the galleries wanted them because they were too offbeat,” Martin recalls. “They took me down to the bowling alley, explained their vision of other dimensions and weird aliens and pressed all my buttons.”

In 2020, Martin joined an investor group to revive the historic Santa Fe Southern Railway. “We’re bringing the railroad back,” he announced on his blog (called Not a Blog) after the purchase. “Not just as a means of transportation, but as a whole new kind of adventure.”

Today, the line runs themed trips between Santa Fe and Lamy, a tiny rail town about 18 miles southeast, and includes holiday excursions with onboard music and immersive performances. Two of its vintage train cars have even made it to the big screen: Both were featured in Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer.

His partner on the project, Bill Banowsky, gives Martin full credit for the railway vision: “It was his idea to paint one locomotive like the head of a wolf, one like the head of a dragon,” he says.

Coming up, Martin is also about to break ground on a city-street backlot for his Stagecoach Foundation, the nonprofit he founded in 2017 to provide free film and TV job training for New Mexicans and to attract production to the region.

Of course, not everyone in Santa Fe is thrilled about Martin’s growing influence. Some locals worry that the influx of tourists and GRRM fandom is helping to drive up congestion in a town already struggling with gentrification. And then there are the readers who would really just prefer he finish The Winds of Winter.

“I just want to make one thing clear,” he tells THR. “While I’m an investor and an owner in some of these things, I do not run them on a daily basis. Every time I announce something on the internet, there’s all this crazy talk. ‘Oh, he’s giving up writing the books!’ But I’m still writing. The [sixth] novel, the ‘Dunk and Egg’ story — those are what I’m focused on.”

Still, to many residents, Martin’s presence has helped preserve and revive some of Santa Fe’s cultural landmarks. Which is exactly what you’d expect from a man who knows a thing or two about building kingdoms — and keeping them alive.

You’re Not in King’s Landing Anymore

A brief tour of George R.R. Martin’s Santa Fe attractions.

1. SKY RAILWAY

430 West Manhattan Ave.

“Sometimes gunslingers raid the train,” says Martin of his rolling theater. “Occasionally, one of our riders is murdered and the rest have to decide who did it.”

2. MEOW WOLF’S HOUSE OF ETERNAL RETURN

1352 Rufina Circle

Otherwise known as the defunct bowling alley Martin purchased and rented to a group of “weird-ass” artists.

3. JEAN COCTEAU CINEMA

418 Montezuma Ave.

Since Martin restored the 49-year-old theater in 2013, it’s done more than screen movies — it’s hosted drag shows, magic acts and author events.

4. MILK OF THE POPPY

418 Montezuma Ave.

Try the MOTP Milk Punch, made with pisco, white Armagnac, coconut matcha and turmeric cream.

5. BEASTLY BOOKS

418 Montezuma Ave.

Best place to pick up an autographed Game of Thrones novel, or a plush dragon.

This story appeared in the July 30 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.