Today: Martin Allen. Author.
5 Strange Things About Martin Allen
1) Despite making a number of public appearances (Stage Magic, a Musical,
Mooting[which is presenting a legal argument in a competition]) and
training in the law, which all require public speaking etc. I have quite
crippling stage fright, which of course results in a rush of adrenaline
while on stage and then a crash afterwards as the adrenaline wears off.
2) In my last stint of boredom I learned how to make chainmail. I have a
tendency to invent projects for myself in fits of boredom that involve
learning a new skill. They rarely get finished because the point is to
learn the skill not complete the project. I have an inverse version of
this if I hear new knowledge or something I don't think is right, I'll
absolutely have to look it up or it will bug me for ages. I'm dreading
the prospect of a language becoming one of these projects as that would
just consume so much of my time. I did attempt to learn Arabic once but
it didn't stick.
3) I am absolutely and completely uncomfortable with any kind of
compliment or praise. I have been known to try and get out of things
that involve celebrating any kind of success that is attributable to me
(up to and including my own graduation). While I can be cut up by a
negative review or a criticism I generally learn from them and move on,
praise makes me cringe. This also extends to having my photograph taken.
If there is a camera at a party or social gathering or even someone
using a smartphone to take photographs I can easily loose track of
conversations as I track where these infernal devices are being pointed
so that I can duck behind a pillar or turn my back at the last moment, I
will circulate the gathering with the sole intention of avoiding the
line of sight of the camera.
4) I am utterly incapable of reading body language as it pertains to me.
However thanks to learning body language reading skills I can quite
accurately predict events and read other people as long as what I'm
reading in relation to are absolutely nothing to do with me. As a
Magician I used to occasionally pull off fake psychic readings to
illustrate the techniques fake psychics and charlatans would use to
convince people that they are genuine (as an explanation I am only
referring to people who are not psychic saying that they are psychic; I
do not seek to say that all psychics are fraudulent because at least
some are - that would be a logical fallacy).
5) I ended up editing a charity anthology (which I had contributed a short
story to - "6 Points of Contact")for wounded veterans despite being
dyslexic (according to an educational psychologist I should never have
learned how to read unless I had an extreme amount of extra help). I
only told the other authors part of the way through the process.
Martin Allen- author, can be found online at the following spots:
Amazon Author Page
Author Facebook
Website
Books:
6 Points of Contact (Anthology)
Phoenix Penitence (Phoenix Series)
Phoenix Rising (Phoenix Series)
Phoenix Ashes (Phoenix Series)
Phoenix Ashes (Audiobook)
Short Stories:
Residents of Caer Bannog Need Not Apply
The Trial of Dr. Fautus
Beorma
Non-Fiction:
The Prosecutors Fallacy: The Reliability of DNA and Fingerprint Evidence
Abstract Digital Art:
Recondite