Andrew Paul Soltis, born on May 28, 1947, is an American Grandmaster of chess and a well-known chess author. He was born in Hazleton, Pennsylvania but later moved to New York City, where he attended Herbert H. Lehman College. He became an International Master in 1974 and Grandmaster in 1980 as designated by the World Chess Federation. Soltis became popular through his regular contributions to the publication Chess Life.
Soltis has more than 100 published books about chess, which have been widely recognized for their detailed and comprehensive instructions. His books often focus on innovative ways to teach the complex ideas underlying the game. Among his best-known works are "Pawn Structure Chess" and "The Inner Game of Chess."
Apart from writing and playing, he has served as a Reader at the J.G. White Collection (the world's largest collection of chess books) of the New York Public Library. He also teaches chess classes at the Marshall Chess Club.
Soltis has achieved significant success in competitive chess; he earned the title of U.S. Chess Federation Life Master at just 16 years old. He also won the U.S. Open Chess Championship twice (in 1973 and 1977), along with two individual gold medals in the World Student Team Championships in the 1960s.
Notably, in 2006, chess columnists ranked Soltis as the 9th greatest chess journalist in history. Meanwhile, his writing about chess history, strategy, and the culture of chess has been widely recognized and highly praised by chess enthusiasts around the world.