'Game of Thrones' season 6 updates: George RR Martin explains why our most beloved characters have to die

George R.R. Martin, the author of “A Song of Ice and Fire,” from which the TV series “Game of Thrones” ("GOT") is based, is known for killing off main characters.

Fans have long objected to his decisions and, finally, he has spoken up. “I think a writer, even a fantasy writer, has an obligation to tell the truth,” he says in his interview with Galaxy Edge .

The truth that he pertains to is often mentioned in both the books and TV series -- “Valar Morghulis” -- which means “All men must die.” He elaborates that this reality is very applicable if a writer is particularly writing about war . He has been applying this reality to majority of his fiction. He emphasizes that a war story really cannot be written without violence and death.

Martin further says that if the writer wants to be honest, it should affect the main characters. It is usual in plots where the hero, his girlfriend and best friend go on adventures and none of them end up dying. The only ones that die are always the extras. For Martin, that is tantamount to cheating. He says that it does not always happen that way. The group goes to battle, the hero’s best friend dies or is extremely wounde, a leg is lost and they encounter death unexpectedly, Martin says.

The author shares that death is so arbitrary and it is coming for all of us. Hence, if you want to be an honest writer, then you have to write about death. When a writer accepts that death is to be written, then he also needs to be honest with its attributes, such as it being sudden, happening at any time or place.

He says that a character is not immortal simply because they are handsome, a cute kid or the best friend of the protagonist. There are times even the hero dies, especially in his books.

After five seasons of heartbreaks experienced by fans whenever a beloved character dies, most of the viewers have learned that it is not good to be attached to characters in the show, Time Magazine notes.

Some of the most heart-wrenching deaths are Ned Stark’s beheading, Oberyn’s skull crushing scene, the Red Wedding and Jon Snow’s multiple stabbing. Most often these scenes are placed as season-enders, which leave viewers in shock and wanting for the next season.

Game of Thrones airs Sundays on HBO. It also airs on Foxtel in Australia.