Author profile
Megan Thornton
Senior Casino Analyst · 10 years of experience
Senior Casino Analyst focused on pokies and fair terms
Megan Thornton is the lead author at Lillytales and has spent ten years around online casinos, first as a writer and later as an analyst. She reviews online pokies sites for Australian players with one aim: to explain what actually happens when you sign up, deposit, play and ask for a withdrawal. Her writing is plain and specific. She quotes terms directly, says clearly what she could not verify, and never tells readers that a site or a game is a sure thing.
Career
- Coastline Media GroupJunior Content Writer, Gaming Desk · 2016-2018
Megan started out writing news briefs and explainers on wagering and gaming for a Sydney-based digital publisher. The job taught her to check sources before deadlines, write for general readers rather than insiders, and keep opinion separate from reporting. It also gave her a first look at how offshore casino sites market themselves.
- Southern Cross Gaming ReviewCasino Reviews Writer · 2018-2020
At an independent review publication she moved from news to hands-on casino reviews. She opened accounts, tested deposits and withdrawals, and documented support conversations. She pushed for reviews to record the date of each test and to list unresolved issues openly instead of leaving them out of the final score.
- Harbour AnalyticsBonus Terms and Compliance Analyst · 2020-2022
Megan worked with an iGaming consultancy that audited promotional terms and player-facing policies for operators and affiliates. She read wagering requirements, maximum bet rules and withdrawal limits line by line, and flagged wording likely to confuse players. This period shaped the detailed bonus checks she still uses today.
- LillytalesSenior Casino Analyst and Lead Author · 2022-present
Megan leads the review work at Lillytales, where the site compares 9 brands for Australian players interested in online pokies. She writes and updates the reviews, maintains the testing checklists, and works with editors James O'Connell, Chloe Nguyen and Liam Fitzgerald, who check every review before it is published or revised.
Professional highlights
- Built the bonus terms checklist that Lillytales applies to each of the 9 brands it compares.
- Introduced dated test notes so readers can see when a payment or support check was last carried out.
- Set up the house rule that every review lists known problems, not only the strengths of a site.
- Wrote the plain-English glossary of wagering terms that sits alongside Lillytales bonus reviews.
- Helped design the editorial review step where a second editor checks facts before a page goes live.
- Made safer gambling information, including links to Gambling Help Online, a standard part of every review.
How I test casinos
- We review each site's terms, licences, payment methods and public reviews before it is listed or re-scored.
- I read the full bonus terms, including maximum bet and game weighting rules, before I write a single line about an offer.
- I request a withdrawal and record how long each stage takes, from pending to the money actually arriving.
- I contact live chat and email support with the same practical question and compare the accuracy of the answers.
- I play pokies on both a phone and a laptop to check loading, game filters and whether the cashier works on mobile.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do casinos pay you to write positive reviews?+
No. Lillytales may earn a commission when readers use some partner links, but that does not buy a rating or a place in our comparison. I write the reviews, and an editor checks them before publication. If a partner site has slow withdrawals or unclear terms, the review says so in plain words, and the score reflects it.
Is playing online pokies legal in Australia?+
Australian law restricts operators from offering online casino services to people in Australia, which is why the sites we review are based offshore. That means local consumer protections may not apply in the same way, and some sites can be blocked. Readers should understand this risk, check the rules where they live, and only play with money they can afford to lose.
Do you actually play with real money?+
Yes, where it is needed to test what matters. Deposits, bonus activation and withdrawals cannot be checked properly with demo modes, so I use real funds and keep notes on each step. I treat this as testing, not as a way to win, and I never suggest that any pokie or strategy will produce a profit.
What should I do if I find a mistake in one of your reviews?+
Please email editor@lillytales.com with the page link, the detail you think is wrong, and any evidence such as a screenshot or the current terms. An editor and I will check it against the site itself. If it is a genuine error, we correct the page and note the update, and we will reply to let you know the outcome.