Summary:

• 30-year chess journalist

• greatest editor of Georgia Chess(1999–2006), garnering many national journalism awards

• established the Savannah Chess Club Bulletin

• second-longest serving Chess Life editor

• current Senior Director of Strategic Communication of US Chess

• President of the Chess Journalists of America

Daniel Lucas has been promoting chess journalism both in Georgia and nationally for 30 years. When he first started playing rated chess while living in Savannah in 1993, he began what would become a career in chess journalism by establishing the Savannah Chess Club Bulletin. Five years later, he moved to Gwinnett County, and, after joining the Georgia Chess Association (GCA), he soon took on the role of editor of Georgia Chess in 1999. Soon the Chess Journalists of America (CJA)began naming Georgia Chess the Best Under 1000 Circulation State Magazine (2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004), and the Best State Magazine outright(2002, 2004, and 2005). These initiated a long string of wins for Georgia Chess that extended to 2013. The infrastructure he established allowed succeeding editors to build on his work and maintain the high standards he set.

At the time, both quality and publication schedule of the GCA’s publication of record was highly irregular. Lucas transformed the publication into a sharp magazine. Each of the 42 issues he produced was delivered to GCA members on time. Over seven years Lucas became the longest-serving and greatest editor in GCA history.  When he stepped down in 2006, the magazine was at its pinnacle of quality.

Lucas concurrently served as President of the CJA, another high point in that organization. Lucas left his position as Georgia Chess editor, CJA president, and as a manager and coach at Kid Chess in 2006 to take the position of Director of Publications for US Chess, with the key job duty as editor of Chess Life magazine.

Ultimately, Lucas was the second-longest serving editor of the now 77 year-old Chess Life magazine. He also served as editor of Chess Life Kids. In 2018, he was promoted to the position of Senior Director of Strategic Communication, the position he still holds to this day while working from his home office in metro Atlanta.

Lucas served as 2nd Member-at-Large on the GCA Board of Directors from 1999–2006. He was Librarian for the GCA website from 2003–2011. He also served as a USCF delegate for Georgia from 2004–2009.

Dan Lucas has made significant contributions to Georgia chess in the areas of promotion, journalism, publishing, service, and leadership. He has bettered chess in the State of Georgia in ways in which he has no peer.

Sources:

Dan Lucas, personal communication to Justin Morrison.

USCF website.

Georgia Chess magazine electronic collection.