Telegram - Serving Metropolitan Detroit Since 1944

Michigan is full of historical figures. Recently the Telegram Newspaper dove deeper in meeting River Rouge native Black author Xavier Jones.

Book 0 by Xavier Jones is a collection of short stories, "That entails things that could happen to people, but more specifically Black people, things that can happen to everybody, but they happen to us, I described how they can happen to us, how that might effect somebody that comes from our environment," author Jones describes.

A play on words, Jones titled his novel Book 0 as homage to finishing his second book before his first. Jones has published two novels, "Book 0" and "The Hip & Critical Mixtape Book: African American Horror Stories" (The Mixtape Book). In which he claims both as favorites for different reasons. "With Book 0, I had the rush of dropping my first project, and the support that came with that. The book is short, sweet, and has never gotten me a bad review. The Mixtape Book has stories that seem to me, a little more intense than my already intense first book."The later novel Jones honestly admits,"I rushed the launch, and didn't go over it as thoroughly as I feel I should have. I really kick myself for that," and for that he doesn't promote this book, but it is available on amazon. He calls them historical horror fiction.

Jones finds writing in general fun. "I enjoy crafting stories that can make readers laugh, cry, or wince in their seats," he says. It was not difficult for him to write as he says, "It's all about clearing my head and schedule to actually finish."

Jones recalls being a writer all throughout his schooling. "I wrote my first short story in 5th grade and my first newspaper column my senior year of high school."A product of River Rouge School System and participant of the TV production program, Jones is used to writing and creating stories. "I had a dream of writing movies and getting into the screenplay business. I wrote a few scripts and decided to get into writing books to buff my name up in the business. From there I've been writing interviews, screen plays, comic books, and novels of all genres."

In college, Jones attempted majoring in nursing, then health care and quickly realized that was not for him and went back to his roots. He switched majors to Electronic Media and Film and graduated from Eastern Michigan University in 2015. He did pick up a habit for reading in college and would finish a book a week.

Xaiver Jones' first book - Book 0

Much like Jones' publication, he too is great and carry a good work reputation wherever employed, yet he desires to write full time and is motivated to be self-employed. "I believe with all my heart that I possess the writing skills to make a difference and become noticed of a worldwide scale. I refuse to believe or perform otherwise," he says. Jones credits Jameel Davis,his friend for helping him on his authorship journey and being a positive influence.

There are much more writings to come from Xavier Jones. A gentleman who once carried around his laptop everywhere has no plans to stop writing or slowing down. Jones has experienced many literary pilgrimages from his time in Alabama, his fellowship in Boston and the numerous locations out in Ohio that hones him in on writing. He draws inspiration from his environment. Currently Jones is working on a comic book "Deadlocked" and his novels "Book 0" and "The Hip & Critical Mixtape Book: African American Horror Stories" (The Mixtape Book) are both available on Amazon.

Follow Xaiver Jones on Facebook or Instagram @Xabier_Juan51