James Allen (author)

James Allen (28 November 1864 – 24 January 1912) was a British

philosophical writer known for his inspirational books and poetry and
as a pioneer of the self-help movement. His best known work, As a
Man Thinketh, has been mass-produced since its publication in 1903.
It has been a source of inspiration to motivational and self-help
authors.

Contents
Background
Bibliography
References
James Allen
External links
Born Leicester, England,
United Kingdom

Background Died 24 January 1912

(aged 47)
Ilfracombe, England,
Born in Leicester, England, into a working-class family, Allen was the
United Kingdom
elder of two brothers. His mother could neither read nor write. His
father, William, was a factory knitter. In 1879, following a downturn Occupation Author
in the textile trade of central England, Allen's father travelled alone to Language English
America to find work and establish a new home for the family. Within Genre Non-fiction
two days of arriving his father was pronounced dead at New York
Subject Philosophy, Self-
City Hospital, believed to be a case of robbery and murder. At age
fifteen, with the family now facing economic disaster, Allen was help
forced to leave school and find work. Notable As a Man Thinketh
works
For much of the 1890s, Allen worked as a private secretary and Years active
1901-1912
stationer in several British manufacturing firms. In 1893 Allen moved Spouse Lily Louisa Oram
to London and later to South Wales, earning his living by journalism Children
Nora Allen
and reporting. In South Wales he met Lily Louisa Oram (Lily L.
Allen) whom he then wed in 1895. In 1898 Allen found an
occupation in which he could showcase his spiritual and social interests as a writer for the magazine The
Herald of the Golden Age. At this time, Allen entered a creative period where he then published his first of
many books, From Poverty to Power (1901). In 1902 Allen began to publish his own spiritual magazine, The
Light of Reason, later retitled The Epoch.

In 1903, Allen published his third and most famous book As a Man Thinketh. Loosely based on the Biblical
passage of Proverbs 23:7, "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he," the small work eventually became read
around the world and brought Allen posthumous fame as one of the pioneering figures of modern inspirational
thought. The book's minor audience allowed Allen to quit his secretarial work and pursue his writing and
editing career. In 1903, the Allen family retired to the town of Ilfracombe where Allen would spend the rest of
his life. Continuing to publish the Epoch, Allen produced more than one book per year until his death in 1912.
There he wrote for nine years, producing 19 works.
Following his death in 1912, his wife continued publishing the magazine under the name The Epoch. Lily
Allen summarised her husband's literary mission in the preface to one of his posthumously published
manuscripts, Foundation Stones to Happiness and Success saying:

"He never wrote theories, or for the sake of writing; but he wrote when he had a message, and it became a
message only when he had lived it out in his own life, and knew that it was good. Thus he wrote facts, which
he had proven by practice."[1]

James Allen is still relevant today. His book "As a Man Thinketh" was converted into an audiobook entitled
"As A Woman Thinketh (https://www.audible.com/pd/B00XR0PWEO/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189M
WU-BK-ACX0-034483&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_034483_pd_us)" in 2015. That same year, "Through the
Gates of Good, or Christ and Conduct (https://www.audible.com/pd/B00WIHTOVO/?source_code=AUDFP
WS0223189MWU-BK-ACX0-034385&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_034385_pd_us)" was also released in
audiobook format.

In 2016, an audiobook entitled "The Secret of Abounding Happiness (https://www.audible.com/pd/B01E7RS

VYI/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWU-BK-ACX0-057233&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_057233_pd_
us)" by James Allen, William Walker Atkinson, Florence Scovel Shinn & Hillary Hawkins was released. In
2020, "Morning and Evening Thoughts for the Soul, 31 Days of Wisdom (https://www.audible.com/pd/B086
L1LDHJ/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWU-BK-ACX0-189109&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_189109_
pd_us)", "New Thought Theatre (https://www.audible.com/pd/B089GZP38Y/?source_code=AUDFPWS022
3189MWU-BK-ACX0-199127&ref=acx_bty_BK_ACX0_199127_pd_us)" and "From Passion to Peace (htt
ps://www.audible.com/pd/B0861C26G8/?source_code=AUDFPWS0223189MWU-BK-ACX0-186672&ref=
acx_bty_BK_ACX0_186672_pd_us)" were released as audiobooks and James Allen is listed as an author on
all three books. His works live on.

Bibliography
From Poverty to Power; or, The Realization of Prosperity and Peace (1901) [Contains The Path
to Prosperity and The Way of Peace.]
All These Things Added (1903) [Contains Entering the Kingdom and The Heavenly Life.]
As a Man Thinketh (1903)[2]
Through the Gate of Good; or, Christ and Conduct (1903)
Byways of Blessedness (1904)
Out from the Heart (1904) [Sequel to "As a Man Thinketh"]
Poems of Peace, including the lyrical-dramatic poem Eolaus (1907)
The Life Triumphant: Mastering the Heart and Mind (1908)
Morning and Evening Thoughts (1909)
The Mastery of Destiny (1909)
Above Life’s Turmoil (1910)
From Passion to Peace (1910)
Eight Pillars of Prosperity (1911)
Man: King of Mind, Body and Circumstance (1911) Traduit en Français (https://www.amazon.c
a/dp/B07DLLXB8Q/ref=sr_1_4?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1528826201&sr=1-4)
Light on Life’s Difficulties (1912)
Foundation Stones to Happiness and Success (1913)
James Allen’s Book of Meditations for Every Day in the Year (1913) [Collection of earlier texts,
compiled by his wife Lily L. Allen]
Meditations; A Year Book (1913) [US version of James Allen's Book of Meditations for Every
Day in the Year]
 Men and Systems (1914)
The Shining Gateway (1915)
The Divine Companion (1919)

References
1. "James Allen: A Life in Brief" by Mitch Horowitz, from As a Man Thinketh: Keepsake Edition
(Tarcher/Penguin 2009)
2. Announcement of "new book entitled, As a Man Thinketh" as it appears in the July 1903
Edition of The Light of Reason [1] (http://www.jamesallenlibrary.com/authors/james-allen/light-o
f-reason/1903/july/editorial)

External links
The James Allen Library — Complete collection of works by James Allen including many
issues of his journal, The Light of Reason (http://www.jamesallenlibrary.com)
The James Allen Free Library (http://james-allen.in1woord.nl/)
All of James Allen's books (http://www.abooksource.com)
Works by James Allen (https://www.gutenberg.org/author/Allen,+James+(1864-1912)) at
Project Gutenberg
Works by or about James Allen (https://archive.org/search.php?query=%28+%28%22Allen%2
C+James%22+OR+%22James+Allen%22%29+AND+%221864-1912%22+%29) at Internet
Archive
Works by James Allen (https://librivox.org/author/1323) at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)

An Illustrated Biography by John L Woodcock at JAI.ORG.UK (https://jai.org.uk/about-james-all

en/)

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This page was last edited on 12 August 2020, at 04:55 (UTC).

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