Rising Stars: Meet Christopher Jones

Today we’d like to introduce you to Christopher Jones. 

Hi Christopher, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
Many of my earliest childhood memories are of frequent trips to the local library and the towering shelves of books found there. Long before I knew how to read or write, my parents entertained me with picture books and read stories aloud to me. My grandparents had their own way of storytelling that drew from their impoverished living in rural Kentucky. Eventually, my family encouraged my own “retelling” of their experiences, as well as adapting creative narratives that were popular among children my age. As I learned to read and write, my interest and expression in literary arts increased proportionally. This takes us all the way through my education in the public schooling system and into my freshmen year in college, where I enrolled as an English major (Philosophy/Religion minor). Of course, it didn’t take long to realize that English as a career wouldn’t immediately bring me a high earning salary, so I decided to adjust course and found my way into the United States Air Force. From there, I spent the overwhelming majority of my 20s constructing a professional career as an enlisted member and eventually a civil servant. It was only after finding a measure of financial freedom (and three academic degrees) in my late 20s and early 30s that I was finally able to pour myself back into writing and creative literature in a more intentional and purposed way. That was 4 years ago. Over the course of that time, I’ve self-published two books with a third forthcoming in January of 2022 and have three additional working manuscripts in poetry and fiction. My ambition is to publish once a year until I am no longer able to do so. 

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
That’s a difficult question to answer. In retrospect, my life circumstances unfolded more smoothly than they seemed to in the moment, but that’s not to say they were not challenging. Embracing an enlisted career in the United States military is a high calling; equally arduous as it is rewarding. After four years of service in support of war operations, I was medically retired for major depression disorder. In my experience, mental health disorders in the military are sometimes stigmatized and service members are looked down upon as weak, deceptive, fraudulent, or derelict in their duties. That being said, there are those within the ranks who genuinely care about the emotional wellbeing of their team members and who work to provide access to resources and adequate medical care. 

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Although writing is my first love, it doesn’t yet pay the bills. By day I work as a civil servant for the Department of Defense. Even so, I manage to set aside time to write and stay engaged in my craft. My creative work consists of two self-published collections of poetry: “Signs of Self Utopia” (2019) and “In Likeness of Lifetimes” (2021). Each individual piece in “Signs” is meant to function as a standalone evidence, or “sign”, of progressive growth in love, whether that’s intellectual or emotional. “Likeness” is a follow-up collection that’s somewhat complementary to the ideas found in “Signs”, but whose content is to be read through a much larger aperture than the self, rather, a lifetime. I have one additional forthcoming collection of poetry, “Atomic Blue” (2022), as well as two working projects of fiction. Overall, my writing goals are to publish once a year until I am unable to do so and to eventually contribute work across all major genres of literature. 

Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
Mental and emotional health are really important to me, particularly, as a military veteran. I have great admiration for originations that promote veteran initiatives (i.e., Arts in the Armed Forces), especially when they emphasize artistic creativity, authentic self-expression, and community engagement. 

Pricing:

• “Signs of Self Utopia” $7.50 on Amazon and Barnes & Noble
• “In Likeness of Lifetimes” $6.00 on Amazon and Barnes & Noble

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.heychrisjones.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heychrisjones

Image Credits
Brittney N. Jones