Published author and English Professor Stephen Graham Jones relies on his students to bring in new ideas and new ways of seeing things. Students鈥攊mmersed in his courses on werewolves, comic books, slasher novels, screenwriting and haunted houses鈥攔ely on Jones to paint a picture of the writer鈥檚 life.
鈥淪tudents come to class and they have this intimate knowledge of a world that I don鈥檛 really have access to anymore,鈥� said Jones. 鈥淏ut I get glimmers of it through them. The students keep me plugged into the actual happening world.鈥�
Teaching and writing go hand-in-hand for Jones. He keeps his students informed about the hassles and successes he has with editors, while teaching varied techniques in prose. This process, he said, also provides an added layer of accountability in his own work.
鈥淚鈥檒l be teaching a technique and, a few days later, while working on my own writing, I鈥檒l be tempted to take the easy way out, to do what I tell my students not to do,鈥� said Jones. 鈥淏ut I know they鈥檙e watching over my shoulder. I have to hold myself to the standards I require of them.鈥�
Jones, who came to CU-Boulder from West Texas in 2008, has over 20 books in print. His most recent novel, Mongrels, reached the top of the in late May and received attention from the , and , among others. The coming-of-age story depicts a young protagonist and a struggling family, constantly on the move because of their werewolf nature.
鈥淚鈥檓 known for horror, but this isn鈥檛 horror,鈥� said Jones. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a family story. It鈥檚 really Lilo & Stich with werewolves.鈥�
Jones is most comfortable writing between the ages of 12 and 17, he says. Working in a college environment where most of his students are between 18 and 22, Jones hears a lot of stories about the teenage years. This, he says, helps him identify the hinge points of adolescence, which contribute to his narrative structure.
鈥淲hat I鈥檓 seeing is the person that resulted,鈥� said Jones. 鈥淏ut when they tell stories, they鈥檙e telling back to the triggers that catapulted them here.鈥�
As his students are working on their own prose, Jones encourages them 1) to read way outside their comfort zones, and 2) don鈥檛 get caught up on the same project for more than a couple months. With his own craft, Jones tries to write a story a week; his preferred space is his study at home where he has a stand-up desk and playlists on easy access.
鈥淎t any moment, I can walk away from the keyboard and go watch an 鈥淴 Files鈥� with my kids, or go play ping pong with them, or run the dogs,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 really important with writing. You have to be able to take breaks as you need them. At home, I can walk away, recharge and come back a half hour later ready to go.鈥�
A commitment to writing is the most important, if not essential, ingredient in Jones鈥� literary success. Though he prefers to write at home, he spends a lot of time reading and writing in airports, between book tours and speaking engagements. For Jones, writing takes priority over everything but family, friends and health.
鈥淩eal writers write,鈥� said Jones. 鈥淭he most important thing, even more important than talent, is discipline. I鈥檝e learned to work where I can and to not let travel interfere with my output.鈥�
This weekend, Jones will participate in three panels at : The Art of the Complex Villain, Fantasy vs. Sci Fi: Drawing the line in Fiction and Monsters, Not Just for Horror Anymore. He will also sign books and visit with fans in Author鈥檚 Alley both Friday and Saturday.
鈥淚 love dress up cons,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t allows people to be who they really think they are, whether they dress up or not. It forms a sense of kinship or community. Con gives us a chance to plug into that for a weekend at a time.鈥�
Later this summer, Jones鈥� agent will submit ideas for two follow-up werewolf novels, with hopes of turning Mongrels into a trilogy. He also has an anthropological thriller in the works, which has as its setting a visiting lecture in CU-Boulder鈥檚 own Hale 270. And, come August, Jones will lead another group of aspiring young writers through genre literature and the development of their own prose.
鈥淚t鈥檚 really neat when you can show a student a path that they had not known was even there at all,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f I don鈥檛 give 100 percent teaching, I don鈥檛 give 100 percent writing.鈥�
To see a list of other CU-Boulder affiliates presenting at Denver Comic Con, visit the .
