Story highlights 'Who Fears Death,' by Nigerian American author Nnedi Okorafor won the World Fantasy Award for the best novel in 2011.

Martin will not be the series showrunner

The seventh season of 'Game of Thrones' returns this month

(CNN) George R.R Martin, creator of the hugely popular 'Game of Thrones' series will serve as an executive producer on new series based on fantasy novel, 'Who Fears Death' by Nigerian American author Nnedi Okorafor.

Okorafor announced on her social media accounts that her book "has been optioned by HBO and is in now in early development."

My novel WHO FEARS DEATH has been optioned by @HBO & is now in early development as a TV series with George RR Martin as executive producer. pic.twitter.com/POF7Dj2hWP — Nnedi Okorafor, PhD (@Nnedi) July 10, 2017

Martin later confirmed the news in a post on his blog.

"I met Nnedi a few years ago, and I'm a great admirer of her work. She's an exciting new talent in our field, with a unique voice," he said.

"Even in this Golden Age of television drama, there's nothing like WHO FEARS DEATH on the small screen at present, and if I can play a part, however small, in helping to bring this project to fruition, I'll be thrilled."

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