David Samuel Allen

Writing fiction at the seam where mathematics meets the examined life.

After dropping out of college to focus on video production and graphic design, David Samuel Allen decided to become a strength coach. After deciding to no longer be a strength coach, he went back to college — which resulted in a Master’s degree in mathematics. He now works as a freelance n’importe quoi in Southwest France, where he lives with his wife and three children.

In addition to technical writing, he has worked as a ghostwriter for art experts, published several short stories, and — possibly most notably — been featured on McSweeney’s Internet Tendency. A Free Will Manifold is his first novel.

Elsewhere Opposite Opening Lines to Famous Novels — McSweeney’s Internet TendencyA Translation of a Letter from an Obscure Artist to the World — Half and One

Selected work

A Free Will Manifold

a novel · 2026

When a mathematician encounters an impossible library containing the complete record of his life, curiosity gives way to unease. The books are meticulous and intimate, cataloging not only his past, but his apparent future.

Published by Locrian Books.

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