Novelist George R.R. Martin reportedly landed the highest first day sales of a fiction title this year, selling 298,000 copies of A Dance with Dragons. That figure included: 170,000 hardcovers, 110,000 eBooks and 18,000 audiobooks.

Martin had this comment: “It took me longer than anyone would have liked. But now that the book is here, I hope my readers will conclude that it was worth the wait. The turnout at my signings has been extraordinary, and I’m delighted to have the chance to meet so many of my fans, both those who have been with me all the way and those who have come to the books through the terrific new HBO television series.”

If you want to read more about Martin’s long road to publishing the fifth book in his Song of Fire and Ice fantasy series, check out this New Yorker essay by Laura Miller.

Correction: An earlier version of this post omitted the word audiobook.