My favorite chess authors are Irving Chernev, Andrew Soltis and Mikhail Tal.

Favorite players? Not as easy to answer, but I would have to select Mikhail Tal and David Bronstein, both were able to conjure up combinations that take your breath away. For instance, the ending of Bronstein vs Korchnoi, 1962 is just startling. And J Szukszta vs Tal, 1956 was a blitz game!

As white I try to steer the game into a Blackmar-Diemer Gambit whenever possible. As black I enjoy the Four Knights Sicilian and Budapest Defence.

I have posted several games from my correspondence days below. Please feel free to comment or post questions about them, I'm happy to reply.

Here's a picture taken of me at my chessboard: http://www.zechiel.com/images/david...

For anyone wondering how I go about composing my initial posts, I open Windows Notepad next to the diagram and put down all my thoughts. Frequently I will rearrange some of my ideas, occasionally deleting whole paragraphs if I discover that a line I'm pursuing is fatally flawed. I will spend anywhere from five minutes to the better part of an hour depending upon the day of week, then I usually add "time to check", click on the diagram and post my analysis without looking at the game or anyone else's contributions. I say "usually" because sometimes I do look before posting, and in those cases I might add some additional text below "time to check" (but I don't change my original text).

I can't speak for everyone, but I do recommend giving this technique a try. Be honest with yourself and you might find that it will improve you analytical skills.

I like to play chess online at http://freechess.org/ using the handle dzechiel. My preferred time control is "2 12 u".