Next Move: My Terrible, Wonderful, Bipolar Life

Troy Roberts is the author of Next Move: My Terrible, Wonderful, Bipolar Life, his first book. Raised in a Baltimore family with mob ties, he grew up in a tumultuous household, surrounded by crime, prostitution, violence, and drugs, often escaping with his mother and sister to his grandparents' home near Savannah, Georgia.

As an early teen, he fell under the thrall of the Jehovah's Witnesses, but by the time he was in his mid-teens, he found another, far more powerful obsession: chess. Despite an almost crippling affliction of bipolar disorder inherited from both sides of his family, he managed to rise from his circumstances and become a top-rated U.S. chess player, achieving the rank of Life Master. Troy Roberts is ranked 13th in Maryland, and 45th nationally among players aged 65 and over, according to the latest United States Chess Federation ratings as of February 2025.

Professionally, he was the brains behind the rise of high-end designer hardware and plumbing fixtures in big box retailers such as Lowe's and Home Depot. He calls Baltimore home and lives in the area with his beloved wife. He still plays and teaches chess.