Yep, they aren't dumb to set release dates and wiz by them. Instead strongly insinuating a book will released on a date is bad enough.
To wit, I pulled my copy of "A Feast for Crows" from my bookshelf. On the last page of the story ("Meanwhile, Back On the Wall"):
Quote:
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Tyrion, Jon, Dany, Stannis, Melisandre, Davos Seaworth, and all the rest of the characters you love or love to hate will be along next year (I devoutly hope) in A Dance With Dragons, which will focus on events along the Wall and across the sea, just as the present book focused on King's Landing
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That was in
June 2005, after Martin said he had basically written an entire book about the other characters, but the combined would be too long and thus would have needed a "To Be Continued". He gave the impression that basically all that needed to be done was a small bit of editing and then the second book would be released a year from the present one to give some space between the two.