Find The Right Chessable Author For You
For anyone serious about chess improvement, Chessable is the premier place to learn the game. Chessable has hundreds of courses for all levels, from beginner to Lifetime Repertoires that even grandmasters study. With so much content, it can be tricky to find the best courses and authors for your needs. So, here's a guide to some of the most popular authors on the site, so you can find one who speaks to you!
IM Christof Sielecki
Sielecki rose to fame with his Chessexplained YouTube channel in the early days of chess streaming. He developed a knack for making complicated concepts understandable. In his courses, he simplifies the moves of top grandmasters so that you can reproduce their ideas effectively in your own games. Sielecki won Chessable's 2022 Author of the Year award and the 2024 Best Presenter award for his courses. Check out fan-favorites like his Keep It Simple opening series, up through his more advanced courses like his Lifetime Repertoire on the Triangle Slav.
This is the author for you: if you're looking for practical and easy-to-understand guides to advanced opening theory.
IM Andras Toth
Toth, the 2021 Chessable Author of the Year, is an Australian-based coach specializing in adult students. He started working with Chessable in 2020 and released his popular Chess Principles Reloaded trilogy. Toth focuses on essential chess principles that you can apply in your own games, most famously in his trilogy. Besides his own excellent work, he also teams up with well-known players and teachers to present courses like Master Your Chess With Judit Polgar and IM Jeremy Silman's The Amateur's Mind.
This is the author for you: if you're looking to build fundamental chess principles to help grow your game.
CM Can Kabadayi
Kabadayi, the 2024 Author Of The Year, was not a chess prodigy. He didn't start the game until he turned 17. Even so, he rose to the rank of candidate master, and his courses help bring you along his path of adult improvement. He focuses on the cognitive science of learning and has created several extraordinary and instructive courses, such as his Chess Crime and Punishment and his "Art of" series, which have all been met with overwhelmingly positive reviews.
This is the author for you: if you're looking to master the fundamentals of chess improvement with methods supported by the latest in cognitive science.
CM Azel Chua
Chua is a candidate master who rose through the ranks through hard work—solving tens of thousands of tactical exercises. He knows what it takes to improve at chess and what setbacks you need to overcome along the way! Chua is well-regarded for his strategic and tactical work, including the fan-favorite Introduction to Chess Calculation and Calculation: A Complete Guide for Tournament Players.
This is the author for you: if you're looking for original content and training methods that the author himself has used.
FM Kamil Plichta
Plichta is a fierce competitor at the board. He particularly thrives in the faster time controls. He publishes regularly and shares his secrets in his many courses. Not many authors have used their own lines to defeat the likes of GM Magnus Carlsen in a blitz tournament! His most popular course goes over his beloved Trompowsky, which he used against Carlsen, but don't sleep on his King's Indian Attack or many his Lifetime Repertoires.
This is the author for you: If you want to learn aggressive, practical, and high-level openings.
GM Simon Williams
The winner of the 2022 Best Presenter Award, Williams has long been a fan favorite. He brings a remarkable mix of fun, humor, and educational value to all of his courses. There are few authors who have played so many amazing attacking games of their own, or who can entertain the crowd while teaching the classics at the same time! Check out his Jobava London course or his Killer Dutch to get an idea of his style.
This is the right author for you: if you like spectacular and swashbuckling repertoires designed to wipe your unsuspecting opponents off the board.
GM Anish Giri
Giri needs no introduction, as he's been one of the top players in the world for over 10 years now. He's one of the few top players who takes his writing as seriously as his own chess. His courses are a treat for the serious tournament player. Check out any of his Lifetime Repertoires if you want to shock your opponents in the opening.
Doing some work on my LTR Grunfeld chessable course and I hate to say it, but it's going to be real good again.
— Anish Giri (@anishgiri) March 16, 2024
This is the right author for you: if you want the highest level theory out there.
GM Sam Shankland
If you want a top-level author who focuses on the strategic aspects of the game, Shankland is the one for you. He works hard on opening courses and high-level positional courses like the pawn-focused Small Steps to Giant Improvement. If you want to think like a modern super-grandmaster, any of Shankland's courses will show you what it takes.
This is the right author for you: If you want high-level training in all parts of the game.
Which author is your favorite? Did we miss any great ones? Let us know in the comments.
