I started playing chess in college, but never had the time (or perhaps
natural ability) to be really successful. However, I made many good
friends and occasionally picked up a class trophy playing in
tournaments. After I graduated, job and family slowed down my chess
activities. However, about six years ago, I started solving the
helpmates in David Brown’s Chess Life column. I had only seen
direct mate problems previously, and I found helpmates to extremely
interesting. I subsequently subscribed to
StrateGems and was truly amazed at the wide variety of
wonderful chess problems that existed and quickly became interested in
Series-Movers, Stalemates, Selfmates, and Proof Games. After attending
a couple of Good Companions Meetings, I decided to start regularly
solving problems and now send in solutions for every issue of
StrateGems.
I still currently consider myself to be mainly a
solver. I once wrote to the Editor of Chess Life, "I can always
sense when a solution is starting to work, because the cold, dead,
chess pieces suddenly come alive and dance across the chessboard. At
this point, a smile usually comes to my face, and my head starts to
shake at the cleverness of the composer to even think of such a
wonderful series of moves". However, Edgar
Holladay told me at the Good
Companions Meeting in Indianapolis, that "All chess composers start
out as solvers". I am finally starting to understand what he meant
because the urge to compose seems to grow daily. I have had a couple
of problems published, but they were only pieces of fluff done for fun
and will certainly not be reproduced here.
So, what are my favorite chess problems? I have always
had an interest in #2 miniatures. Bob Lincoln’s three books on
miniatures, Fun With Chess Miniatures, More Fun With Chess Miniatures,
and Still More Fun With Miniatures have given me great pleasure.
Miniature #2 problems are like eating popcorn. I solve one, then
another, then another and its hard to stop. Here is an example of a
miniature I liked from Bob’s books.
