Robert Allen was born in Bristol, England, but has lived in a variety of places, including New York, Quebec, Ohio, British Columbia and Ontario. Allen is the editor of Matrix Magazine and for many years served as the director of the Concordia creative writing program. He has several collections of poetry including, The Hawryliw Process, The Assumption of Private Lives, Wintergarden and Magellan's Clouds. [BCBW 2003]

Review of the author's work by BC Studies:
Restraining the Economy: Social Credit Economic Policies for B.C. in the Eighties