I faced your situation about a year ago and started writing about it recently.
Have a look at the website here: Becoming a Chess Master (http://becomingachessmaster.com/about/becoming-a-chess-master-introduction/)
You may find something of use in my Chess Study Plan. (http://becomingachessmaster.com/study-plan/)
Tarrasch advocated that a beginner study as much as they can before entering tournament play and his advice applies more than ever with today's rating system.
You'll be out of your element so playing casual practice games at a chess club is a must. Set the clocks to at least 30 minutes per side, most tournaments are fast anyway whereas the slow 60 minutes per side and more tend to be only a few times a year in an area. If you can find someone at a club to spar with at 60 minutes per side then great! Go over the game with them afterwards to see where you go wrong.
If you think you see a winning move slow down and make sure it's winning. This requires calculation, judgement, finding potentially prophylactic moves or intermediate moves, etc. Even in online I don't always slow down when I should.
@ThisisChesstiny: thanks a lot for the links. Appreciated.
@TheGreatOogieBoogie: Wish I had this opportunity. People at the club tend to like blitzing. And to be honest i find it hard to play seriously in a casual game. It s like I know my opponent is not giving his best and i dont give mine either and we end up blitzing out most of the game.
Join the Slow LIVE Chess Association on here. You can play 45|45 and 90|30 games against players who are just as serious about their game as yourself. It's definitely worth taking a look at:
http://www.chess.com/groups/home/slow-live-chess-association
Hey there. Not too long ago I started my journey into tournament chess and i am loving it. The tricky part is that online blitz isn't giving me satisfaction anymore and more importantly it's proving to be less and less effective for improvement.
Any of you tournament players out there face this problem? Any tips or advice as to how to improve my standard chess play?