Please improve my attack.

Hey everyone, I played this game just now, I ended up winning but it was one of those matches where I felt like I missed something. Actually, as a patzer I probably missed quite a lot. I was just hoping better players could improve my attack. Did I miss an easy mate? Or something more obvious? My computer can't open PGN files for some reason so I can't post the game, it's my most recent one in my history. Thank you. :) 

Try opening the pgn with Notepad or whatever the equivalent is in Mac, that ought to work.

That did the trick. Thanks a lot!

Make sure you flip the board too, guys! I was playing black. :D

To increase the arsenal for attacking is easier and enjoyable

1.) Get miniature games

2.) Learn all the basic mating patterns (you can get them from searching chess.com articles)

4. Play through the games of frank marshall..

5. Learn the traps 'fishing pole' and 'classic bishop sacrifice'

6. Practice

8. Practice

9. Practice................

Hi Zeyrion--lots of good tactics in that one and this particular opening seems to suit you.  What I noticed, and what we see a lot at this level, is players wanting to lead the attack with pieces instead of pawns.  This makes sense because pieces are stronger, right?  But pawns do serve a function in the middlegame--by trading or even sacrificing themselves, they create inroads and avenues of attack which didn't exist before.  You got your c5-d6-e5 stonewall established early, but then around move ten, your queen put on a one-woman show that could've easily been repelled by your opponent.  Imagine, for example, if he'd found 11. Bxf6 Bxf6 12. Nd5! instead of 11. Ne2.  White should've simply exchanged knights on d4, but he let his kingside get fractured with 12...Nxf3+, then moved everything the wrong way and ran out of defenders for his lonely monarch.

You had the advantage here of a Closed Sicilian; remember, closed means not much is happening and there's plenty of time to gain space gradually.  The whole reason black plays 1...c5 against e4 is to give him leverage on the queenside: a6, b5, and b4 are natural space-gaining moves that force out well-placed pieces like a knight on c3.  But you went all the way from move 3 to move 17 (!) without pushing a single pawn.  Your opponent helped you with some defensive errors, but get used to leading with your weaker guys, not the queen.  She'll land herself in a bad place one of these days, whereas getting your pawns and minor pieces out there first will enable you to better break down the defense. 

Thank you very much for the information. I've always been quick to apply pressure even when it affords me an almost instant loss. That's something I'll have to work on.

I'll have a look at what you recommend, thank you.