Mr Virgil Lavell Abney

Virgil Abney has spent decades studying the intersection of strategy and human experience. His work is rooted in a simple observation: that life, like chess, rewards those who think several moves ahead while remaining present to the board before them. He writes not from theory alone, but from practice—having sat across from enough opponents, both on the board and off, to know that every fall carries a lesson for those willing to study it.

Avien Abney brings a younger perspective to the work, reminding us that wisdom is not bound by age. His voice in the pages of our publications speaks to the generation currently navigating the board for the first time—asking the questions, making the moves, learning what it means to rise. Together, father and son represent the passing of insight from one hand to another, a living example of mentorship in motion.

Their collaboration on Why Do We Fall? reflects their shared belief: that intelligence seeks, that resilience is built move by move, and that the game is always worth playing.