Golden Age Scifi and Other Cool Stuff by Jackson Allen
MESH is my first novel in a YA #Scifi series about smart kids saving the world. If you like Stranger Things and Ready Player One, this is your jam.
Novelists sometimes say that a novel is really two stories – the story itself, and the story about how it got to the market. I’m starting to see the truth of that statement, after this week’s events. Rather than becoming bitter, I’m choosing to see all of this as part of being a writer. Therefore,…
Read More “Mesh and the Big Book Deal Adventure – Part One” »
As promised, Mesh has gone through another round of edits and now it’s ready for presentation to new lit agents. The changes made to Mesh and the process of these edits reminded of something: forging and shaping steel into a sword. Watch this cool video, and then I’ll explain what I mean: What you…
I’m really happy with how fast this came together. Please enjoy this piece of character concept art for Mesh. One of the main supporting characters of the novel is a fifteen year-old teen named Tina. Enjoy the Here’s a brief description: Pretty, Roman thought. Not like… like Konani, but still. Zeke elbowed Roman and mouthed the word cute. She had…
So yes, Mesh takes its name from ‘mesh networking.’ Non-nerdy types might immediately wonder after finishing the book, ‘is this real? Can a mesh work?’ The answer to both questions is yes – mesh networking is totally real and can totally work. Let’s talk about the why’s and how’s in a handy little format for…
When writing a sci-fi book, one of the first questions you may be asked is ‘how real is your book?’ I’m happy to say that not only are the technologies I talk about in Mesh completely plausible, they’re completely real! Don’t believe me, believe this write-up on the Mesh network of Havana, Cuba. According to…
Today in the ‘big happy news department,’ I’m excited to tell you that Mesh appears to be ready for launch/book agent queries! To help facilitate that process, I’ve created a new portal page for the book to tell newcomers what Mesh is about and help drive it forward to representation. So if you’re interested in…
Got some nice Mesh feedback yesterday. One of my beta readers came back with some style suggestions but says ‘otherwise, it’s ready for next steps.’ Squee, squee! I’m hanging out over on /r/writingprompts while I wait for more feedback. Here’s a Twofer Tuesday – New microfictions for you, based on the following two premises: A…
Read More “Microfiction – Supervillains and Batman’s Worst Nightmare” »
I love this thread over at /r/movies about ‘Great Women Stories’ because it encapsulates a problem I’m hoping that Mesh will solve. To whit, most ‘women’ movies today are silly women-repackaged-as-men movies and they aren’t that good: One hour ago, I just watched Ocean’s eight followed by Ghostbuster (2016). I can tell you it left…
So this is a new concept piece where I’m digitally painting my book’s characters. Sam and Tina? If you were to describe them, you’d say they’re every tough, smart girl you’ve ever met. The ones that code, compete in jiu-jitsu and joke around like regular people. It’s too easy to fall off into tropes like…
Happy to say that I have completed a new piece of concept art for Mesh. Hope you enjoy this new scifi digital painting that I call ‘Chilling at the Station.’ Part of the story takes place in virtual reality, and the main school VR construct is a Victorian station that branches off into many cyberpunk-y…