Allen Steele is an American science fiction author, born on January 19, 1958. He is best known for his Coyote series, which is a sequence of novels and short stories that depict the colonization of a distant planet resembling the American frontier. Steele began his writing career in the late 1980s and has since become widely recognized in the science fiction community for his hard science fiction approach and his engaging storytelling. Many of his works explore themes of space exploration, interstellar colonization, and the cultural ramifications of contact with other civilizations. His writing style has earned him multiple Hugo Awards and nominations, particularly for his short stories. Besides the Coyote series, Steele has written numerous standalone novels, short fiction collections, and has contributed to various anthologies and magazines within the genre.