It takes some writers years to type “The End” to their first manuscript. Dennis Eaves has completed two novels before the age of twenty-one. He was eighteen-years old and still in high school when his first book, Zax and the Three Beasts saw the light of day. That was in 2021. A year later in November he released his second book, Zax and Dax. Being emersed in fantasy helped Eaves accomplish the feat. “For as long as I can remember, I have been enthralled with the genre of sci-fi fantasy and have created fantasy worlds and played out scenarios in my mind. Zax battling the monsters was one of these fantasy worlds,” Eave said. “By writing these books I am sharing my creativity for all to enjoy and in some way or another, maybe connect with my characters.”
The Zax series centers around a boy who spent most of his school years as an outcast. Eaves added, “But when a new student enrolled in his high school, everything he thought he knew about himself came to light; his life and his world drastically changed. Earth’s existence now lay on his shoulders.”
Eaves’s original plan was to write a Zax trilogy. After two novels, Zax’s world grew in Eaves’s mind. “Once the trilogy is complete, I plan to write more books introducing new characters that live in the same universe as Zax, at different points in time. Some of the characters from some of the books will ultimately come together in a final book that will finish and tie off the Zax universe.”
To be a good writer, you must be an avid reader. Eaves cites Percy Jackson, The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan as his favorite book. “It was the first book I ever read completely, and I felt an immediate kinship to Percy’s character when it was revealed that he had dyslexia. Having it myself, and seeing him overcome that challenge, made me believe that I could too,” he said.
When not spending time with Zax, Eaves is a full-time, dual major student at Piedmont Community College with aspirations of receiving an Associates of Arts degree and a degree in Digital Animation and Effects Technology. He added, “I also work at Caswell Pines Golf Course and volunteer at Gunn Memorial Library, where I host an Anime Club and teach Japanese calligraphy.”
Eaves enjoys volunteering at the library because it unites people from different walks of life through common interests such as Anime and Japanese folklore. “In our Anime Club meetings, we watch movies and talk about them. It’s a great way for people who already have an interest in the subject to get together or for people who think they may have an interest and want to learn more,” Eaves said.
Eaves finds visual beauty in the art of Japanese calligraphy. “I enjoy teaching this to others as another way of sharing the Japanese culture and how different it is from our own.”
Even with a full schedule, Eaves finds time for another passion… drawing. “A lot of my drawings are based on characters from amines that I watch,” Eaves added. He also created the covers for his books. “the biggest thing I wanted to depict was the energy inside the earth. This held true for both books but for the second book, I also wanted to depict the clash of energies that was to come.”
As for the future, Eaves plans to continue writing and “sharing my stories, the way my mind sees things, with the world. In doing so, I hope to inspire others to express their own creativity by sharing their own stories, whatever they may be.”
Dennis Eaves’s paperback books can be found online at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Walmart, Books A Million, Bookshop.org, Book Depository, and Indiebound.org. At Indibound.org, you can find local independent bookstores in your area where his books may be purchased and mailed directly to you.
In Caswell County, NC, signed copies may be purchased at the Milton Art Gallery and the Caswell Council for the Arts. Eaves can be contacted directly at authorzax@gmail.com to purchase a signed copy.
Eaves’s books are also available for purchase as a Kindle e-book, which can be viewed on any device through the Kindle app. For those with Kindle Unlimited, my books are free to read with your subscription. Audiobooks should be available in the near future.
