The Odds

Interview with GhostOfGamesPast (Empty Throne victor)

Well, after several months of fierce competition, amazing writing and the occasional bad-tempered owl, The Empty Throne is finally over! With the next Games not due to start until after Christmas, I caught up with GhostOfGamesPast (a.k.a Ghostie) to ask him a few questions...

Hi there! Now, let's cut to the chase here. You're one of the most regular Author_Games participants; how does it feel to have finally won?

It feels pretty wonderful and mostly surprising; there were so many brilliant competitors, and both my fellow finalists were extremely strong writers and excellent characters. When I found out, I had the most massive smile on my face, which kind of confused my brother, but it just put me in a good mood for the rest of the day. It's nice to know that I finally must have got it right, and I feel honoured!

Alenaia made her mark as one of the more distinctive characters of the competition; where did the idea and inspiration for her come from?

Originally, I'd intended to completely base Alenaia off myself, but I quickly changed my mind because I thought it was a risky idea as I might get too attached to her and upset if I lost - which ended up not being a problem. So, instead, I kept in mind two main questions: "What kind of person would you like to be?" and "What would you want in a ruler?". Alenaia just sprang from those two questions, and I'm glad she was enjoyed as much as I enjoyed her. 

So what was your favourite thing about her?

There were many things that I liked about Alenaia, but I think my favourite thing about her was describing her tense relations with those around her, particularly Atlas and Latias (because Pokemon names are awesome). I think this is one of the things that made her a more rounded character than I usually write, and I found it quite enjoyable. 

The Empty Throne was different to our typical format in many ways, which had a large impact on the variety of tasks. Which of them did you most enjoy writing and why? 

That's probably the most difficult question so far! I really enjoyed writing most of the tasks, mainly those where I could focus on Alenaia's background, but I have to say my favourite was probably The Thief. It showed Alenaia's softer, compassionate side, which I was quite fond of (despite accidentally sentencing the poor boy to life instead of a year. Revision is important) [Very! - Ed.].

As mentioned, as well as running your own Games, you're a hugely prolific competitor. However, unlike our last victor, it took you a long time to get this win. Do you have any advice for future participants?

After five losses, I think I've pretty much chalked up enough to write a book called Things Not to Do if you Want to Win an Author Games, but I'm fairly certain that nobody would actually appreciate that, so I'll stick to the two major tips I can give. First, always stick to the task given; although creative license is good, don't overdo it. Focusing half the task on a hallucination with a demon bunny just won't do - trust me, I've tried. The second thing I can say is to avoid making enemies. Although this is a writing competition, walking in and beginning a gigantic alliance war is very likely to cause you to be constantly targeted, and - unless you're Porter - you won't last very long if you're constantly up for votes, no matter how good you are. I'm not saying to focus solely on yourself, because I think it's important to compare yourself to others and see how well you need to do to keep going, but don't annoy anybody with constant plotting and bragging. It won't turn out well.

Now, you're probably getting sick of questions about the Games, so we'll move away from them. You've made a lot of tributes in your time. Who is your favourite and why?

Oh boy, this is a tricky one; I've made over sixty tributes, so choosing just one would be extremely difficult and almost impossible. However, I could nail it down to three. There's Antigone Meralla, from Double Trouble, who was probably my first multidimensional character and who I still adore. Then, there's Claymore/Clay Morningstar, from Jeopardy, whose complex friendship with his partner in the arena, Portia, never failed to entertain me. And, of course, Alenaia will always hold a special place in my heart, both because I love her as a character and because her Heir crown makes my  ghost heart very happy.

And away from Panem entirely...read or write?

Write, most definitely; there's not a day that passes without my writing something (mainly because I typically have seven entries due). I just love getting to explore a new universe and seeing the point of view of a plethora of different characters. 

Still, you must read a lot! Who is your favourite/ least favourite fictional character? And why?

Hmm... I've got a few favourite fictional characters, some from Wattpad, and some from published novels. There's Sebastian Nyler, from RobotsWillCry's Nothing Personal, whose tactics I admire, despite almost everybody loathing him. As far as published books come, I have to say Vera Claythorne, from And Then There Were None, who is still the only character I've met whose sob story I can tolerate, simply because of it's sheer creativity. Oh, and don't get me started on Captain Jack Sparrow; he is literally the definition of a perfect character - not because he is flawless, but because even his flaws are bloody awesome.

As far as least favourite goes, I think that award goes to President Alma Coin from Mockingjay; during the novel she does nothing that makes her an interesting villain, nor is she made a hero, which I find makes her extremely bland. Oh, and she was probably responsible for Prim's death. The entire cast of the Twilight series is also pretty horrendous, but I assumed that was too obvious.

Thanks very much, and we hope to see you come back and try to defend your title!

That's it for now! Yes, it's a long time until the next Games, but keep your eyes on the account for hints and previews, and if you have any ideas, please let us know. But until then: write on, shoot straight and may the odds be ever in your favour!