John Tallen started as Little John and Mr. Talon helped me turn my poor health into triumph.
Mr. Talon is the storytelling dragon behind many of the creative ideas at Tallen Families Stories. He is not a dragon who guards treasure or flies across kingdoms at least not yet. Instead, he helps turn life experiences into stories that encourage, teach, and bring families together.
Mr. Talon began as a creative avatar that gave me the courage to share my ideas more openly. Over time, he became a symbol of growth helping me move toward being more human and showing my actual face in my social Media posts. Two many “Content Creators” type a paragraph into a AI chat and use the first thing that shows up. My real face shows I am trying to use technology in a thoughtful and responsible way.
At Tallen Families Stories, Mr. Talon represents the AI-assisted side of creativity. When stories explore imagination, fantasy, or playful “what if” ideas, Mr. Talon often appears as a guide.
🧡 Why an Orange and Brown Dragon?
I live with autoimmune conditions that affect my skin and lungs. Leaving the traditional classroom wasn’t easy.
At first, I tried drawing Mr. Talon with red and white patches to reflect psoriasis but it looked too frightening for children. So I chose orange and brown, colors that carry meaning:
- 🧡 Orange honors Indigenous children across Canada—“Every Child Matters.”
- 🤎 Brown reflects the healing tones of skin under treatment and the wisdom marks elders carry.
Mr. Talon is a mix of strength, scars, and sparkles just like real life.
💬 Why Mr. Talon Matters
Mr. Talon was inspired by children especially those who showed me empathy when I was unwell. They didn’t laugh or turn away. They encouraged me, reminded me I mattered, even joked with me when my body slowed down.
✏️ Who Is John Tallen?
I’m the storyteller behind the dragon.
John Tallen
I’ve been an Early Childhood Educator, a helper, a manager and now, through the gift of AI and digital tools, a owner of a Canadian Registered Business. Tallen Families Stories began as a journal during hard times. That journal became reflection. Reflection became a project. And with AI, those stories became hope.
That’s when I realized: Mr. Talon isn’t just mine.
- He belongs to every child who’s felt different.
- To every adult trying to remember who they used to be.
- To every dream we thought was lost, but wasn’t.
John Tallen the Creator of Tallen Families Stories also really really likes animals. I respect and care for animals and hope my stories and blogs help others understand animals. All animals have intelligence and sometimes we as humans could learn from them. Some posts are funny, some messy, some serious. None are written to shock or harm. I love sharing a mix of some of my real life furry or scaly and even sometimes Icky friends as they inspire the AI art animals.
💛 Little John Thanks the Families that taught him
To the students who told me, “You changed my life.” I never did you simply had a hunger to learn and a your questions actually told me what was important to you so you want to learn.
I respect anyone who hand draws especially the weird and strange also dragons and animals of all types. All instrument players and musician of all types the more unique you get shows your passion and I feel you.
To the families and teachers showing up with love!
Thank you for inspiring me to create “Little John” the Wolf for my Ebook book. In Williams Lake while being the Timber Wolves mascot I coached wrestling. Once graduated I became an On Call teacher while finishing my Human Service diploma. I was luck to get a Job as a Level 3 Early Childhood Educator in Whitehorse before medical complications started. I am honored every time I hear Little John was in read in class again.
Together, let’s keep building something that matters.
John Tallen (and Mr. Talon 🐉)