ChessBrainiac采访：美国14岁半职业国际象棋Twitch主播 ...

荣华伞架

原标题：The 14-Year-Old Leading A New Generation Of Online Chess

ChessBrainiac：这位14岁的年轻人领导着新一代在线象棋      

原文链接：https://www.chess.com/article/view/streamer-of-the-month-chessbrainiac
原作者：Mick&http://Chess.com（https://www.chess.com/blog/ChesscomMick）
翻译：World Matp   
<hr/>        ChessBrainiac是一位才华横溢的年轻棋手，他希望在不久的将来获得NM头衔（国家大师，写文章的时候还没有获得，现在已经获得了），目前USCF的评级为2121。就在一年多前，他开始在Twitch上直播他的国际象棋之旅，达到了2700分超快棋（Blitz）评级的里程碑，并在此过程中获得了6000多名粉丝。我们采访了James Andrei Chirilov（信不信由你，他的真名不是Brainiac），以了解更多关于他的直播，他的社区，以及如何通过直播国际象棋对世界产生积极影响。  
<hr/>ChessBrainiac相关信息：

原名：James Chirilov
国籍：美国          地区：北卡罗莱纳州 夏洛特
http://Chess.com网名：ChessBrainiacOnTwitch
头衔：NM（国家大师）
邮箱：ChessBrainiac@yahoo.com
年龄：14岁
关注方式：https://www.chess.com/member/chessbrainiacontwitch
<hr/>以下是http://Chess.com对James的采访：

Q（http://Chess.com）：你直播下象棋有多久了，是什么让你决定开始？  
A（ChessBrainiac）：我大约15个月前开始直播。我看了很多直播，总的来说我喜欢在Twitch上看。我也是Arena Kings的铁杆粉丝，喜欢看大家下棋。几个赛季后，我意识到有一个新的要求：如果你要在Arena Kings玩，你必须把它直播出来。所以我想，好吧！我可以把直播和我喜欢的比赛结合起来，所以让我们试试看。我必须等到13岁才开始直播……我肯定在考虑在那之前直播，但显然，我不能（由于Twitch的条款和条件）！            
Q： 关于直播，你最喜欢什么？              
A： 我绝对喜欢建立我的社区，并且喜欢慢慢地看到越来越多的人进来聊天。它的社会方面令人惊叹；我喜欢你如何与观众互动，享受乐趣，并与他们交谈。              
      如果你只是一个人下棋，有时会有点无聊！直播真的增加了另一个维度。我觉得有时候你只需要在国际象棋中找到乐趣，而直播绝对可以提供这一点。我喜欢分享我对下棋的激情；我六岁左右开始下棋，从那时起基本上就迷上了。         
Q： 谁是你个人最喜欢的国际象棋主播，为什么？              
A： 在我开始直播之前，我几乎只看Levy和Hikaru。他们肯定激励我开始直播。看到他们之间的合作很棒。利维不是一个大主播，但他们有很好的合作项目，因此他涨粉很快。这激励了我开始直播！我想：“嘿，我可以得到类似的增长。”
      现在我仍然看了很多直播，但从那以后我扩大了我看的直播。如今，我经常观看ChessBrahs和Daniel ''Danya'' Narodisky，也还在看Hikaru。这将是我目前最喜欢的三个主播。
Q： 每个主播的子社区都是独一无二的。你如何描述你的社区？              
A： 好问题！我们提到了Levy……我觉得有时我的社区和他的社区有点相似，因为他们肯定喜欢偶尔以我为代价来享受乐趣！这就是Twitch的意思。我的社区肯定有这个方面，但另一方面，它可能非常有益健康。              
      我有一些年轻的观众，也有一些年龄大的观众，他们非常支持我，也很友善。当我情绪低落时，他们肯定让我振作起来。我非常感谢我的社区，老实说，我不会改变社区里的什么。我和他们在一起很开心；它们使直播显得非常有趣。              
Q： 你现在14岁。这比大多数国际象棋主播都要年轻！你觉得14岁的主播和年长的主播有何不同？              
A： 有一点是我吸引了很多年轻观众。我觉得我有很多同龄的朋友鼓励我开始直播，他们已经支持我很久了。所以很多和我同龄甚至更年轻的人都在观看。
Levy或Hikaru的大多数观众可能年纪稍大；作为年轻一代的主播，确实有助于吸引更多同龄的人加入这一行列。我的社区有很多年轻、厉害的棋手，我真的很喜欢。但我确实觉得我得到了来自不同年龄段和人群的平衡支持！              
Q： 到目前为止，你在网上度过的最难忘或最激动人心的时刻是什么？              
A： 当我开始直播时，我给自己定了一个目标：当我在建设我的社区时，我想被Hikaru突袭对战。我记得很清楚，这大概发生在直播开始五个月后。我想我刚刚结束了一场Arena Kings 的直播，我记得当时我在一场激烈的超快棋比赛中，甚至不看聊天，只是尽我最大的努力赢得比赛。              
      当我完成游戏时，我瞥了一眼，意识到我被Hikaru突袭挑战了！我记得我掐着自己只是为了确保我没有做梦。那绝对是迄今为止最激动人心的时刻之一。

……我被Hikaru突袭挑战了！我记得我掐着自己只是为了确保我没有做梦。

Q： 你在直播时收到的最疯狂的打赌或挑战是什么？              
A： 我的社区肯定面临挑战！我经常看ChessBrahs，我肯定得到了他们的帮助和对战，所以我的社区和他们的社区有点融合在一起。正如你所知，ChessBrahs社区喜欢一些疯狂的赌注！              
      至于打赌，没有什么能够超过一个名叫Aksina24的用户打的赌（如果你看GothamChess，你可能会认识他）。每次我完成他的一项国际象棋挑战时，他都会来到我的直播，并提供100个sub（一种打赏主播的礼物）；他会说“你能不用马和后就下赢一场比赛吗？”我试了试。这持续了很长时间！当天结束时，他赠送了大约300个sub！这真是了不起。这真是了不起。这是非常激动人心的一天，这肯定是我得到的最疯狂的赌注或挑战。
Q： 您的频道上人数不断增长。你能告诉我们一些关于你的直播的未来吗？你有什么目标，里程碑或有趣的计划或想法吗？              
A： 对于直播，我一直坚信一开始不要过于关注流量。但现在我的关注量变得更大了，我发现我必须专注于流量来激励自己前进！              
      对我来说，一个巨大的里程碑绝对是10000名粉丝。这是我心中的一个目标。就流媒体而言，我基本上只是想建立我的社区。最近，我在超快棋Blitz中获得了2700分。我的目标只是不断改进，创造一个积极的环境，让每个人都能享受观看直播的乐趣。流量虽然上上下下，但如果你继续构建并专注于此，我觉得在某个时刻流量会随之而来。
Q： 顺便说一下，恭喜你获得http://Ches.com全球锦标赛的资格！我认为你实际上是第一批获得资格的主播之一。你的比赛进行得怎么样？              
A： 所以，如果我没弄错的话，我确实是第一个晋级的主播！我最终在第二场预选赛中晋级；我第一次很接近了。这有点令人兴奋……如果我第一次只是那么接近排位赛，那么我肯定要再试一次。
       我开始了第二次尝试，做得很好：我得到了7/7分，但最后我有一些非常紧张的比赛！观众人数和支持程度都很令人疯狂，很多人都支持我，为我加油。这是一次很棒的经历，当我获得资格时，我非常高兴。这对我和观众来说都很有趣！我认为下一阶段会相当困难，但应该会很有趣，我非常期待那样。
Q： 想象一下，如果你可以跟世界上的任何人在你的直播中进行基于国际象棋的协作，你愿意跟谁，为什么？
A： 这很难说！我一直喜欢看并希望自己能做的是国际象棋解说。我总是看http://Chess.com的直播，这其实并不重要。因此，这些年来我看了很多解说。
      我真的很想和Hikaru一起做解说，或者作为http://Chess.com广播的一部分。但显然，我还未成年，工作是不合法的！也许几年后，这可能是一个选择。
      我认为我心中不一定有一个我愿意与之合作的人，但它可能是我之前提到的三个直播中的任何一条（Hikaru、GothamChess、Daniel Naroditsky）。我很想有机会和他们一起做一些解说。
Q： 我们还没有提到在线象棋的一个重要方面：meme（见注释）。你最喜欢的国际象棋meme是什么？
A： 所以我的一些最爱实际上就在这篇文章中！LulaRobs在她的Twitter上也有一些很棒的meme，她真的很擅长这些。制作它们需要太多的创造力！
注：meme是一个网络流行语，不太好翻译，是指在同一个文化氛围中，人与人之间传播的思想、行为或者风格。译为“模因”、“迷因”等，但通常被直接称为“meme”（来源：百度百科）
Q： 你的推特简介说：“我来到这个世界上是为了给世界带来影响。除此之外，还有国际象棋专家，专业的主播。”您希望对世界产生什么影响？
A： 我认为做一个好人很重要。如果你想一想，一般来说，直播并不一定取决于你，而是取决于社会以及你从他们那里得到的支持和爱。
      直播让我明白了我也必须尽自己的责任。如果不是我的社区和一路上支持我的人，我不会在这里直播。我意识到，在14岁的时候，很难对整个世界产生影响，但我可以尽自己的一份力量。仅仅是善良、帮助他人，以及总体上保持积极的态度，就可以起到很大的作用。有时候你也必须把别人放在第一位。
      我的社区中某个人正经历着人生的艰难时期，他告诉我，他最近刚刚找到了我的直播，感觉受到了社会欢迎，并得到了周围所有积极因素的补给。几天前，他刚找到一份新工作，一切都恢复了正常，我真的很感谢有一个能为人们带来积极影响的社区。我很高兴我能以某种方式帮助人们。

我意识到，在14岁的时候，很难对整个世界产生影响，但我可以尽自己的一份力量。

Q： 最后：你会给有抱负的国际象棋主播什么建议？你学到了什么？
A： 1）不要想得太多。如果你想直播，就开始吧！这需要勇气；并不是每个人都能舒服地和观众讲话，但如果你有这种愿望，就去做吧。不要让自己害怕。我觉得我一开始就必须克服这一点。
      2） 必须始终如一。我觉得这是最重要的事情之一。当我开始的时候，我每天都在直播，持续了大约一个月。你的观众喜欢一个真正去直播的主播！无论你是刚接触还是像Hikaru这样的大主播，保持始终如一都是关键。
      3） 注重营造良好的环境。一开始，有很多喷子，还有很多消极和刻薄的人。你必须有一个良好的氛围，而不是鼓励。如果有人刻薄或讨厌，就拉黑他们，其他人也不太可能这样做。我从一开始就有一两个朋友了解这一点，并帮助保持了一个良好的环境，直到今天！
欢迎在他的Twitch频道上关注ChessBrainiac。本月还有没有你想了解的下一个主播？请在下面的评论中告诉我们！
<hr/>附：原文(英文）

ChessBrainiac is a talented young chess player who's aiming for the NM title in the near future, with a current USCF rating of 2121. Just over a year ago, he started streaming his chess journey on Twitch, reaching milestones like a 2700 blitz rating and gaining over 6,000 followers in the process. We spoke to James (his real name isn’t Brainiac, believe it or not) to find out more about his stream, his community, and how to make a positive impact on the world by streaming chess.
Q(http://Chess.com): How long have you been streaming chess, and what made you decide to start?
A(ChessBrainiac): I started streaming around 15 months ago. I was watching a lot of streams and just loved being on Twitch in general. I was also a big fan of Arena Kings, and loved watching people playing it. A few seasons later I realized that there was a new requirement: if you were going to play in Arena Kings, you’d have to stream it. So I thought, okay! I can combine streaming with a tournament that I love, so let's try it out.
I had to wait until I was 13 before I started streaming… I was definitely considering streaming before that, but obviously, I couldn’t (due to Twitch’s terms and conditions)!
Q: What’s your favorite thing about streaming?
A: I definitely love building my community up, and enjoy slowly seeing more and more people coming in and chatting. The social aspect of it is amazing; I love how you get to engage with your viewers, have fun, and have a conversation with them.
If you’re just playing chess by yourself, it can sometimes get a little boring! Streaming things live really adds another dimension. I feel like sometimes you just need to find fun in chess, and streaming can definitely provide that. I love sharing my passion for the game; I started playing when I was around six years old and have basically been hooked since then.
Q: Who are some of your own personal favorite chess streamers, and why?
A: Before I started streaming I was almost exclusively watching Levy and Hikaru. They definitely inspired me to start streaming. Seeing the collaboration between them was great. Levy wasn’t that big of a streamer, but they had great collabs and he grew insanely. That inspired me to start! I thought: ‘’Hey, I could get similar growth.’’
Now I actually still watch a lot of streamers, but since then I’ve expanded my list. Nowadays I regularly watch the Chessbrahs, Hikaru still, and Daniel "Danya" Naroditsky. Those would be my top three favorite streamers at this moment in time.
Q: Every streamer's sub-community is unique. How would you describe your community?
A: Great question! We mentioned Levy… I feel like sometimes my community is a bit similar to his, in that they definitely like to have fun at my expense occasionally! That’s kind of what Twitch is about though. My community definitely has that aspect to it, but on the other side of it, it can be very wholesome.
I have some younger viewers as well as some members of the older generation watching, who are very supportive and kind. They definitely pick me up when I'm feeling down. I’m very grateful for my community, and honestly wouldn’t change a thing about them. I just have a lot of fun engaging with them; they make the streaming aspect so much fun.
Q: You’re currently 14 years old. That’s quite a bit younger than most chess streamers! How do you think it’s different streaming as a 14-year-old vs. streaming as someone who’s older?
A: One thing about being 14 is that I grab a lot of the younger audience. I feel like I have a lot of friends my age who just encouraged me to start streaming, and they’ve been supporting me for a long time. So lots of people around my age or even younger are watching.
Most of Levy or Hikaru’s audience can be a bit older; being part of the younger generation does help me attract more people my age to the stream. My community has lots of young, strong chess players, which I really enjoy. But I do feel like I have balanced support from a lot of different age groups and people!
Q: What’s the most memorable or exciting moment you’ve had on stream so far?
A: When I started streaming, I made myself a goal: while I was building my community, I wanted to get raided by Hikaru. I remember it very vividly, it happened probably about five months into streaming. I think I’d just finished an Arena Kings stream and I remember being in an intense blitz game and not even looking at the chat, but just trying my best to win.
When I finished the game, I glanced over and realized I was being raided by Hikaru! I remember pinching myself just to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. That was definitely one of the most exciting moments so far.

''... I was being raided by Hikaru! I remember pinching myself just to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.''

Q: What’s the craziest bet or challenge you’ve received while streaming?
A: My community is definitely into challenges! I watch the Chessbrahs a lot, and I've definitely had a lot of help from them and raids from them, so my community and theirs have merged together a little bit. And as you know, the Chessbrah community loves some crazy bets!
Nothing tops a bet by a user called Aksinha24, who you might know if you watch GothamChess. He came to my stream and offered 100 subs every time I completed one of his chess challenges; he’d be like ‘’Okay, win a game without a queen and a knight’’ and I’d try it. That went on for quite a long time! At the end of the day he gifted around 300 subs! That was quite something. It was a very exciting day of streaming and has to be the craziest bet or challenge I’ve gotten, for sure.
Q: Your channel is constantly growing. Can you tell us a bit about the future of your stream? Do you have any milestones you’re aiming for, or fun plans/ideas?
A: With streaming, I've always been a big believer of not focusing on the numbers too much in the beginning. But now that my stream has gotten a bit bigger, I find that I have to focus on the numbers to motivate myself to go forward!
A big milestone for me is definitely 10,000 followers. It’s a goal I've had in the back of my mind. In terms of streaming in general, I'm basically just trying to build my community. Recently I’ve been on the rating grind and hit 2700 in Blitz. My aim is just to keep improving, create a positive environment, and make it fun for everybody to watch the stream. Numbers come and go, but if you continue to build and focus on that, I feel like at some point the numbers will follow.
Q: By the way, congrats on qualifying for the http://Chess.com Global Championship! I think you were actually one of the first streamers who qualified. How did your games go?
A: So if I’m not mistaken, I was indeed the first streamer to qualify! I ended up qualifying in the second qualifier; the first time I came very close. That was kind of exciting… if I was THAT close to qualifying the first time, then I definitely had to try again.
I started the second attempt and was doing pretty well: I was on 7/7 points, and yet I had some very stressful games at the end! The viewership and level of support was insane, a lot of people were rooting for me and cheering me on. It was a great experience and I was very happy when I qualified. It was fun for me as well as the viewers! I think the next phase will be considerably harder, but it should be a lot of fun. I’m definitely looking forward to that.
Q: Imagine you could do a chess-based collab on your stream with anyone in the world. Who would it be, and why?
A: That’s a hard question! Something I’ve always loved watching and wished I could do is chess commentary. I always watch http://Chess.com streams, it doesn’t really matter what the event is. As a result, I’ve watched a lot of commentary over the years.
I would really just love to do commentary with Hikaru, or as part of a http://Chess.com broadcast. But obviously, I’m just too young to legally work! Maybe in a few years that could be an option.
I don’t think I necessarily have one person in mind that I’d love to collab with, but it could be any one of those three streamers I mentioned earlier (Hikaru, GothamChess, Daniel Naroditsky). I’d love the chance to do some commentary with them.
Q: We haven’t mentioned one important thing about online chess: the memes. What’s your favorite chess meme?
A: So some of my favorites are actually in this article! LulaRobs also has some great memes on her Twitter, she’s really good at those. It takes so much creativity to make them!
Q: Your Twitter profile says: ‘’I’m here to make an impact on the world. Aside from that, chess expert, professional streamer.’’ What impact would you like to make?
A: I think just being a good person is important. If you think about it, streaming, in general, is very dependent not necessarily on you, but on the community and the support and love you get from them.
Streaming has made me understand that I have to do my part as well. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for my community and the people who supported me along the way. I realize that at 14 years old, it’s hard to make an impact on the entire world, but I can do my part. Just being kind, helping others, and being positive in general can go a long way. You have to put others first sometimes.
Somebody from my community was going through a rough period of his life, and he told me he’d just recently found my stream and felt welcome and recharged by the community and all the positivity going around. A few days ago he just got a new job and everything is going back to normal for him, and I’m really grateful to have a community that can make a positive difference for people. I’m glad I can help people out in some way.

''I realize that at 14 years old, it’s hard to make an impact on the entire world, but I can do my part.''

Q: And finally: what advice would you give to aspiring chess streamers? What are some of the lessons you’ve learned?
A:1) Don’t overthink it. If you want to stream, just start! It takes courage; not everybody feels comfortable speaking to an audience, but if you have that desire, just go for it. Don’t allow yourself to be fearful of it; I feel like I definitely had to overcome that in the beginning.
2) Be very consistent. I feel like that’s one of the most important things. When I started, I streamed every day for around a month. Your viewers want to watch a streamer who streams! Having that consistency is key, whether you’re starting out or if you're someone like Hikaru.
3) Focus on having a positive environment. At the start, I had a lot of trolls, and a lot of negativity and mean people in general. You have to set the tone and not encourage it. If someone is mean or annoying, ban them, and others are less likely to do the same thing. I’ve had one or two mods from the beginning who understood this and have helped keep a nice environment to this day!

Catch ChessBrainiac live on his Twitch channel. Is there anyone you'd like to see as the next Streamer of the Month? Let us know in the comments below!
<hr/>对James（ChessBrainiac）感兴趣可以联系他的邮箱：chessbrainiac@Yahoo.com或在http://Chess.com搜索ChessBrainiacOnTwitch
不在大陆地区的朋友也欢迎到Twitter，YouTube和Twitch联系他