My world was five blocks long.

Conan: I'm just imagining you coming from this completely other world and you're from Bayonne, North Carolina.
What about growing up there brought you to this world?
Was there anything about your childhood?
GEORGE R. R. MARTIN: It was imagination.
I come from a blue collar family.
My father was a long shoreman.
We lived in the projects on first street there which has a deep water channel in front of it, it's the connection between the bays and Staten Island across the way.
We didn't have much money.
We didn't even own a car.
My world was five blocks long.
We lived on administrative street, I went to school on first street.
I read books and watched television and film.
I would watch the big ships with all of the flags of different countries of the world and lights of Staten Island across the way where we never even went and wondering what exotic mysteries and wonders lurked on Staten Island.
Would I ever see them.
CONAN: That is your concept of what Staten Island is?
[Laughter]
CONAN: That's fantastic!
GEORGE R. R. MARTIN: I did finally get to Staten Island and I have to say it was kind of disappointing.
[Laughter]