Carl Edward Jackson was born on August 24, 1968, at Saint Vincent Hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas. After birth, he lived in the Granite Mountain housing project with his mother, father, and sister. He was a good child, but he was abused often by his father. Carl found his safe place in school. He attended Woodruff and Franklin Elementary Schools and was declared gifted and talented. In the sixth grade, he starred in a musical version of Alice in Wonderland as the White Rabbit. During his senior year, Carl was elected Student Council President. After high school, Carl attended the University of Arkansas for three years. He dropped out of college after his fraternity brothers found out he was Gay. Despite being a college dropout, Carl held professional and management level jobs at Fortune 500 companies, but Carl began to experience serious mental illness symptoms and could no longer work. He started writing books as a form of therapy. "Life has highs and lows. I am inspired to capture those moments and create stories as a form of art, " says Carl.