John Herron - Author at TheChessWorld Blog
John Herron is a retired computer programmer & analyst who now works part-time teaching chess to children.
John has taught thousands of children to play chess with his 1-2-3 approach.
He finished tied for first place in the 1992 U.S. Open Chess Tournament, Class C. He also coached a two-time Scripps National Spelling Bee finalist. His interests include artificial intelligence, backgammon, chess, go, poker, scrabble, bicycling, sailing, tennis, table tennis, volleyball, and wallyball.
John is also the author of numerous chess books including Total Chess and Totally Puzzled.
Chess Articles by John Herron
Total Chess: Dynamic Tactics
Dynamic tactics occur when an attack involves more than one of the opponent’s pieces. They are the most common tactics in chess. They happen all the time, if you know what to look for. 1) Fork A fork tactic happens when one piece attacks two pieces at the same time. While the opponent is busy […]Total Chess: Direct Tactics
Direct tactics occur when an attack involves only one of the opponent’s pieces. They are the easiest tactics to learn and use. 1) Single Threat A single threat happens when one piece attacks one of the opponent’s pieces, or gives check, or makes a threat. It may be a checkmate threat or a threat to […]Total Chess: Board Strategy
Board strategy means making your overall position better. A better position leads to better moves, and better moves leads to a better game. You should always try to make your position better, and try to make the opponent’s position worse. There are three parts to the chess strategy to make your overall position better. The […]Total Chess: Piece Strategy
Piece strategy means making your pieces better. Better pieces lead to better moves, and better moves lead to a better game. What is a better piece? A better piece is a piece that is well placed on the board, or a piece that works well with other pieces.Total Chess: Pawn Promotion
Pawns are the least valuable pieces on the chess board. So, are pawns important? Yes! Every pawn could turn into a queen. When you capture one of the opponent’s pawns, you never have to worry about that pawn becoming a queen. When the opponent captures one of your pawns, you have one less chance of […]Total Chess: Opening Systems
In the opening, many different moves are possible. You cannot memorize them all, but you can learn the opening systems you would like to play. An opening system is a specific type or style of opening, and the ideas and the strategies that go with it. Each opening system has its own typical moves and […]Total Chess: King and Pawn vs. King Endgame
This endgame might seem simple, but it is not. There is a lot of strategy. If you have the pawn and you can promote it to a queen, then you will win. If the opponent has the pawn and you can stop it from promoting to a queen, then you will draw. Often, the deciding […]Total Chess: More Ways to Draw
There are three more ways to draw, but they do not happen very often. They are more common with advanced players than with beginners, and they are more difficult to recognize and harder to decide.Total Chess: Pawn Advances & Exchanges
Now that you know about strong pawns and weak pawns, you are ready to learn about pawn advances and pawn exchanges. The pawn structure changes every time you or the opponent moves or captures a pawn. Naturally, you want the changes to be in your favor, not in the opponent’s favor. Always consider the changes […]Total Chess: Strong Pawns vs. Weak Pawns
Strong Pawns Pawns that work well together are called strong pawns. They are hard to attack and easy to defend. You should try to make your pawns strong, and try not to make the opponent’s pawns strong. Strong pawns usually become stronger in the endgame.
