About Me
I’m Jackson Allen and I’m an author of scifi stories. Here’s a quick story on how I got here.
First thing, Jackson isn’t my real name. 
When I was young, I was a child actor in Hollywood. You might even know some of the films, commercials and TV shows I’ve been in. Sadly, it wasn’t a very happy way to grow up. The stories you read about child actors being abused – physically, emotionally, and mentally – are true. I came away from my childhood with several disorders and some PTSD. Like many others who tried to solve those problems by themselves, I spiraled into a number of bad choices to crash and burn in my late 30s.
Starting over again, I made some promises to myself:
- I was going to live my best life as someone creates, fosters, and shares the selfless parts of me – my own personal version of effective altruism
- I will use my talent – telling stories – as both art and commerce: I want to be a professional writer!
- Wherever it’s good and prudent, I will use the success of my talent to serve others
These principles guide me on a journey away from being a broken person to a place where I can help heal and support others on their adventures.
About The Stories I Tell
As a storyteller, my process is always evolving and my storytelling has principles of its own:
- Be kind
- Respect the reader by telling stories with integrity and authenticity
- Create dual-control universes where my readers’ imagination can play as much as mine does
Why ‘Golden Age’ Scifi?
Good question! Twenty years of Star Wars, Marvel, and Transformers have left me utterly disillusioned with what people call ‘scifi.’ At the same time, modern head-bending scifi tends to be graphic, and violent. That doesn’t sit well with me. In times past, science fiction was both a window, and a lifeline to otherwise hopeless kids. What kind of future are we helping kids dream of when we reduce science fiction to ‘magic punching people?’
The answer seems to be Golden Age scifi, those stories that bridged the gap between what is, and what can be, in a format that any age can enjoy. I love ‘Golden Age’ science fiction, so celebrate that with my stories. I’ll add to this as I go along. I’d love to be able to tell you the whole plan now, but I’m still figuring it out, myself! 🙂
Housekeeping Notes
One of the outcomes of my life is a severe anxiety disorder. Like millions of others, I live with a disabling mental condition that limits the interaction I can have with other people. I‘ve recently given a few more details, but please be assured that this a real problem that I deal with every day.
Because of my disability, I struggle with human interaction. This blog post helps explain what I’m dealing with. This one goes into some other detail.
Thanks for reading – grab a free ebook while you’re here.