The Odds

Interview with HeadOnJackwards (Age of Rebellion Victor)

Hello, hello, hello!  After two months, Age of Rebellion is finally over! I managed to catch a moment with newly-crowned Victor and ex-President of the account HeadOnJackwards for a few words about his victory.

Hi there, Jack! Let's get straight down to business; how does it feel to have won the Games? As the creator of the Author_Games account, was there any extra pressure on you to do well?

I just do not know how to even begin answering this. Winning these Games has been so incredible for me I can't wipe this ugly smug grin off of my face. It really feels like all the effort really did pay off (hiding at a party in a closet to finish task one , going away and having to write two tasks in one week and running from my sisters birthday in order to finish the final) yet each competitor is not without their own sacrifices and efforts. 

I think it is fair to say there was extra pressure to do well, yes. Using my ex-alias was certainly a bold move but not only was it putting a piece of known history into the game, it was also putting a bit of myself in. Vibbius after all is an older and exaggerated version of myself and he's not just a character known by me but also by most of the other competitors and even the Gamemakers themselves. With the use if the character I happily caused some initial stir of excitement and I just knew that I couldn't throw this away like I had with Lynx in last year's DNA. 

I suspect we know the answer to this already, but where did you get the inspiration for Vibbius? Why did you decide to write him? It was a huge risk to take...

Well recreating Vibbius and entering him into these games was an idea that actually occurred to me around the audition task. As you know in the audition task we were given the choice of, I think, four tasks to write a response to? Well upon seeing the task that asked you to write about "The event that made your character flee their original district." 

Now being the dramatic and 'wanting to be different' kind of guy I am, I wondered if it would be cool to see a Capitol citizen flee their district. Eventually after some planning of this my mind lead me to my old alias and pervious Capitol creation - Vibbius Cretore!

I even began writing the audition task a little before realising that if I managed to get a place in the games it would be SO perfect if I could write for Vibbius throughout them and well, apparently it was! 

What was your favourite thing about him?

I'm going to be honest here, my favourite thing about Vibbius was that right from the word go I knew that there would be hype surrounding his characterisation and what not. 

With a vague history I could play around with, he's a well known character amongst most people in Author Games circles and that kind of thing really helped me set up some initial motivation; I've always loved working with a gimmick. 

Vibbius has been in the spotlight enough, I think, so it's time for some questions about you. As we both know, the right or wrong task can make or break a character. Which task was your favourite?

My favourite task, without a seconds doubt, was the Semi Finals. Named as 'The Crescendo' it really put me into a comfortable position as I usually write to music anyway, however not always to the type I was given. The task also  was the first that officially let us basically do what we liked. I could finally explore all the areas of Vibbius' past I wanted to and bring him up to the climax point in time for the finals. I think the music was chosen perfectly and it really presented the best balance between challenging me and speaking to me and my character emotionally. I have never thought so much about a task before.

You ran this account for over a year before handing over to Lizzie, so you must have picked up a fair number of tips and tricks along the way. Is there any you would like to share with potential competitors?

Create a strong yet accessible character. When beginning the games that's all you have the power to do! The rest is too easily changed and altered by the vicious minds and evil schemes of your Gamemakers. There's no point creating a character and thinking that you know exactly where you want them to end up in two tasks time because you have NO clue what those tasks will be. Adapt to the tasks, don't awkwardly try to adapt them to your character.

Moving away from the world of Author Games now...many people will claim that to be able to read is to be able to write. But which would you rather do?

Write. Reading opens worlds up to you but I've always wondered, why limit yourself to someone else's world when you can create your very own? I've actually found I can only ever read a book if I can see it as a film. If I can't put a direction to it and place it well then I struggle to stay focused and entertained. Honestly I do not read often, but when I do it only begins fuelling my imagination and I can't pay attention because, well, I'm thinking about my own ideas and creations! Having said that - I don't write much either! Oh to be a lazy teenager... Too many shiny distractions you see.

What's the best book you've ever read? Why?

There's no getting over how cliché this is so I'm just going to get it out and over with. The first Hunger Games. 

I remember my mum bringing me back the book from after she had been into town. She said that the "nice lady in the book shop recommended this when I told her your interests." What the hell must my interests of been?? Watching children die for the lols and the rofls? I remember picking up the book from the kitchen counter with a pure look of disgust on my face. I'd seen and read the Battle Royale series so as you can imagine I was not impressed. However I started reading due to my mothers black mailing and, well, I didn't stop until it was dawn. That night was filled with adrenaline and high pitched squeals and for all the wrong reasons. I remember very clearly reading the line where Katniss volunteers for Prim and (yes despite reading the blurb before hand and knowing full well what would happen) I was soon bouncing up and down on my bed squealing "OH NO SHE DIDNT" and all the other phrases you'd expect from a camp, overly enthusiastic thirteen year old. 

Now I admit, the writing in the book itself isn't exactly F. Scott Fitzgerald standard but... Well now, without the Hunger Games books I would not have started this very account.

As if the barrage of Hunger Games fanfiction isn't enough, there's further proof right there of the power of books to inspire - even if the writing leaves a little to be desired! How would you describe your own writing style?

I think that a lot of my writing contains symbolism and metaphors for the bigger picture. Usually I will write entire paragraphs that lead up to one final line. I use a lot of motifs throughout my writing in order to evoke powerful and recurring thoughts within my readers. I think, and others have pointed out, that I write and create the visuals within my writing rather like that of a screenplay for a movie. Good job I want to be a director then isn't it?

Indeed, though we all hope that that won't leave you with too little time to write! That's all we have time for for now, so thanks for taking the time out of your schedule to answer our questions. Ladies and gentlemen, our newest Victor: HeadOnJackwards!

Stay tuned to The Odds for the latest on all things Author_Games, including hints for our next competition, the low-down on what it's like behind the scenes and any other bits and bobs we might feel like including!

~ The AG Team :)