He received a master's degree from the Divinity School of the University of Chicago, where he studied with the theologian David Tracy.
Richard Bausch expressed his gratitude to Jones "for fighting" in Good Evening Mr. and Mrs. America, and All the Ships at Sea, published in 1996.
Russell Banks recognized Jones for his support in the creation of Cloudsplitter (novel) (1998) and The Angel on the Roof (2000), as did Armistead Maupin for The Night Listener (2000).
John Colapinto cited Jones' painstaking explanation for editorial changes in the acknowledgments for As Nature Made Him (2000).
His first novel Force of Gravity was described by Iris Murdoch as "a beautiful, terrifying tale of a quiet descent into insanity."