Perpetual Chess Linkfest #113, February 20, 2025

Fighting and Danger

Hello there chess world! Here are this week’s chess links…

Chess Improvement

Great post from GM Alex Colovic on the value of maintaining tension in a position, what he calls “The Holding Moment.” (GM Alex Colovic’s Blog)

GM Noel Studer on Plateaus. “I wanted to prove that I could live from chess, that all the years of practice had been worth it.” (Next Level Chess)

Nicholas Sloan also shared a lot of good advice on plateaus, fixing weaknesses, and maintaining a training regimen (Highground Chess)

White to Move and Mate in 2! Answer within Jennifer Shahade’s latest blog post.

Kevin from Good Moves, on Making Plans vs. Making Moves. “If you approach a chess game as if it’s a tactical puzzle, then you’re going to try to identify a tactic no matter what” (Good Moves)

Are you Looking for a Chess Set?- Bryan Maniotakis reviewed a cool-looking, but expensive new one, the Nymzo Series 1. (Not a paid endorsement)

For those of you on BlueSky Dan Bock made a “Mate in 2 Bot” there (The Chess Improvement Lab)

Martin Justesen is back with another puzzle sheet, as well as info on a new algorithm that he is working on to help him compile material for a chess book. (Say Chess)

FM Andy Lee discusses chess decision-making through the lens of some critical moments from his recent team tournament (Lit & Chess)

Books

Ben Graff reviews Peter Doggers’ The Chess Revolution. “Perhaps the best way to look at this book is as you would an old friend. Much of what they say does not come as a surprise after all this time, but they still make for congenial company.” (ChessMoves)

Nick Visel reviews the classic tactics guide Chess Tactics from Scratch. “When you feel like you don’t know how to find good moves in particular positions in most of your games, but you’re at a level where the skill gains have slowed down, that’s a good time to consider picking up this book.” (Nick Plays Chess)

Richard James reviews a new edition of GM Andy Soltis’ How to Choose a Chess Move. Soltis’s book might be seen as both an expansion and a corrective. If you’re looking for a book which teaches you how to think rather than what to think about, which improves your thinking processes rather than providing you with even more chess knowledge, it might be ideal for you. (British Chess News)

Misc.

Here is an important piece from Dr. Benjamin Portheault about what he views as the increasing sensationalism of professional chess. Benjamin also touches on phone addiction, and how to try to regain the ability to focus. (Mindcreaser)

In the latest in his series, Sam Kahn looks at the underappreciated legacy of Rudolf Spielman. "He seemed to love fighting and danger for their own sake." A Century of Chess

Romanian Women’s Champion, IM Irina Bulmaga writes about the increased professionalization of chess. Do the bars in Wijk an Zee need to be replaced with ice cream shops due to the younger tournament participants? (The blog of Irina Bulmaga)

Podcasts

Magnus went on The Joe Rogan Podcast. I haven’t listened, but Tarjei wrote about it. (Chess.com)

GM Hans Niemann did not agree with everything Magnus said on The Joe Rogan Podcast!

The last two Perpetual Chess episodes featured:

1. WGM Dina Belenkaya on her new chess school and why she thinks Chess960 is unlikely to go mainstream

2. GM Jan Gustafsson and my funny friend FM Donny Ariel on whether a mid-40s FM could make realistically earn the GM title.

That’s all from me for this week, have a good weekend!- Ben