game improvement

1) I am an amateur playing chess with rating of about  950-1000 . however the game goes nice and suddenly I tend to do silly blunders sometimes. Any remedies for that ? I guess not concentrating on the complete board each time  may be one of the reasons but how to improve and what else could be the reasons.

2) Is studying chess books of annotated games helpful as there seems to be double opinion about the same as some just favour playing games ?

3) How to play chess like an art as oppose to a science through methods, openings and other technical stuff ?

would be grateful if any master can study my games and suggest improvements .

1. Sit on your hands. Seriously. This tip improved my rating by about seventy points. Don't pull your hands out from under your butt until you've decided on a move.

2. Almost any chess-related activity will be helpful... it's a question of "could the time be better used at something else". Personally, I get quite a bit out of books of annotated games.

3. This is a tricky one. Play over the games of some of the true artists of the chess-board, like Reti:

http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1030774

White's last move in that game is rather artistic, IMO.

1. Before playing a move, always anticipate the opponent's reply.

2. They are both useful. I suggest spend equal time for each. 

3. Chess is art, science and sport. In a sense, these 3 aspects are the real art of chess :)

Thanks so much

Thanks so much

Just keep at it. Study a lot and you'll be intermediate in no time. Books are great, I always have a chess book on the go, but the internet is even better. Countless ways to learn online. Good luck :)

1. I've looked over a few of your games and it's obvious you need to pay more attention to undefended pieces. Are any of your pieces or pawns undefended? Are any of your opponent's pieces or pawns undefended? Are there any tactics available that win/lose material?

Before you play your move imagine the new position. Are there any new undefended pieces? How many attackers and defenders are on each piece? What do you think is your opponent's best move in the new position? As bank2010 said you should always anticipate your opponent's reply.

Below is a position from one of your recent games. (https://www.chess.com/live/game/1797010747)

In that position you were easily winning with two extra pawns and the more active rooks. Your next move took you from a completely winning position to a completely losing one. You played 18.Na4 (in 5 seconds, with more than 20 minutes on your clock). This is not a good move for a few reasons:

1. Your moved your knight to a square where it was both undefended and under attack. Before you moved your knight to a4 you should have considered whether your knight would be safe on a4 and looked for your opponent's best reply. Had you done so you would have realised that Na4 is not safe as it can be met by Rxa4, as happened in the game.
   
   
2. Your knight on c3 was defending the pawns on a2 and e4 which were being attacked by Black's rooks. You should have been aware that your knight was defending these pawns. Before moving your knight you should have thought about whether the pawns would be safe after Na4. If you had done so you would have noticed that Na4 would leave the pawn on e4 undefended. You would have also noticed that the pawn on a2 would no longer be directly attacked because the a-file would have been blocked (by your knight on a4!).
   
   
3. Let us now ignore the fact that Na4 can be met by Rxa4 to consider this next point. Na4 leaves the pawn on e4 undefended but it also attacks Black's undefended bishop on b6. Perhaps Black won't have time to capture on e4 because he needs to save his bishop, giving you time to once again protect your pawn on your next move. With all the attacks going on this is a position that requires some concrete calculations. If you calculated the most forcing moves (checks) after Na4 you would have found Be3+ which saves the bishop with check. Blocking the check loses material (with another check) so your best move is Kb1 after which Black can take the pawn. So that line to calculate is 18.Na4 Be3+ 19.Kb1 Rxe4, losing a pawn. If you had calculated captures after Na4 you should have again found Rxa4. These aren't deep or difficult calculations and should be well within your ability to do.
   
   
4. It would be very helpful for you to discover this fourth reason on your own. 18.Na4 is a blunder, so what should you have played instead? Analyse the position and find your best move. Calculate what you think is the best line of play, looking for the best moves for both you and your opponent. Hint: undefended pieces.

2. They are both helpful and you should do both. Also, don't forget your tactics.

3. Creativity is the creation of ideas. Art is the expression of ideas applied with skill. Work on developing your skills (which includes what you describe as "science") and have an idea behind every move you play. If you have time try to come up with multiple ideas and choose between them; the best move is not always the most obvious.

Thanks a ton Joe for taking the time out to analyse my game and giving such a wonderful and easy to understand explanation .Will definitely follow the wonderful suggestions given . Thanks once again. My last  query is I am finding slight trouble visualising more moves  ahead as I feel I need to work it out . Any ideas on improvement of these ?

How to reduce your blunders.

1. Solve tactics problems

2. Always look at the whole board

3. Always study your opponent's last move

4. Before you make a move, check if there is a tactical drawback.

Some general guide.

1. Unless you don't have  a good reason not to do so, castle.

2. Bring out your pieces.

3. Put your rooks on open file.

4. Open with 1.e4 or 1.d4

5. Put your bishops on good diagonals.

you can study the tactics puzzles on the website

you can also get a coach

don't waste time

and let someone else just tell you the knowledge