I'm Robert James, and I'm seeking ARC readers for my upcoming novel, "The Dull Men's Forum." It's a literary exploration of the beautifully mundane, a journey that spirals from post-graduate drift into an obsessive pilgrimage through forgotten routines, bizarre rituals, and the strange comfort of stalled time.
Blurb: Lawrence is adrift. A year out of university, he finds himself living in a flat that could generously be described as a living room-cum-bedroom-cum-kitchen, cataloging mould varieties on unwashed mugs, and perfecting the ritual of making instant coffee to a near-religious degree. His life is measured in the seconds it takes for the kettle to boil, the angle of dust on his bookshelves, and the soft cough of a radiator that’s been dying for as long as he can remember.
But everything shifts when he stumbles upon The Dull Men's Forum—an online community of people obsessed with the unnoticed and the unremarkable. Here, he meets men who collect traffic cone sightings, chronicle the repainting of grit bins, and photograph the weathering of roundabouts. Most intriguing of all is Gerald67East, a man who waters his plants at precisely 7:14 AM every day, a ritual performed with the precision of a liturgical rite.
Compelled by the need for purpose—or perhaps just distraction—Lawrence sets off on a pilgrimage across England to meet the members of the Forum. From Clive, the horologist who collects broken clocks to resist the tyranny of continuous time, to Dennis, who’s been cataloging the decline of British postboxes since 1998, each encounter is a step deeper into the philosophy of stalled progress and the art of stillness.
But it is Michael's absence that drives him forward, a presence unspoken but felt in the quiet spaces between routines. As Lawrence inches closer to understanding the beauty of the mundane, he’s forced to confront his own suspended life—and whether he’s really living at all.
If you love:
Literary fiction with a darkly humorous edge
The melancholic beauty of everyday life
Characters that find meaning in the unremarkable
Sharp, introspective prose and dry wit
…then I would love for you to join me on this journey. I’m looking for ARC readers willing to dive deep, reflect, and share honest thoughts. If you’re interested, please comment below or message me directly.
Thanks for your time, and I hope to share Lawrence’s journey with you.
I'm Robert James, and I'm seeking ARC readers for my upcoming novel, "The Dull Men's Forum." It's a literary exploration of the beautifully mundane, a journey that spirals from post-graduate drift into an obsessive pilgrimage through forgotten routines, bizarre rituals, and the strange comfort of stalled time.
Blurb:
Lawrence is adrift. A year out of university, he finds himself living in a flat that could generously be described as a living room-cum-bedroom-cum-kitchen, cataloging mould varieties on unwashed mugs, and perfecting the ritual of making instant coffee to a near-religious degree. His life is measured in the seconds it takes for the kettle to boil, the angle of dust on his bookshelves, and the soft cough of a radiator that’s been dying for as long as he can remember.
But everything shifts when he stumbles upon The Dull Men's Forum—an online community of people obsessed with the unnoticed and the unremarkable. Here, he meets men who collect traffic cone sightings, chronicle the repainting of grit bins, and photograph the weathering of roundabouts. Most intriguing of all is Gerald67East, a man who waters his plants at precisely 7:14 AM every day, a ritual performed with the precision of a liturgical rite.
Compelled by the need for purpose—or perhaps just distraction—Lawrence sets off on a pilgrimage across England to meet the members of the Forum. From Clive, the horologist who collects broken clocks to resist the tyranny of continuous time, to Dennis, who’s been cataloging the decline of British postboxes since 1998, each encounter is a step deeper into the philosophy of stalled progress and the art of stillness.
But it is Michael's absence that drives him forward, a presence unspoken but felt in the quiet spaces between routines. As Lawrence inches closer to understanding the beauty of the mundane, he’s forced to confront his own suspended life—and whether he’s really living at all.
If you love:
Literary fiction with a darkly humorous edge
The melancholic beauty of everyday life
Characters that find meaning in the unremarkable
Sharp, introspective prose and dry wit
…then I would love for you to join me on this journey. I’m looking for ARC readers willing to dive deep, reflect, and share honest thoughts. If you’re interested, please comment below or message me directly.
Thanks for your time, and I hope to share Lawrence’s journey with you.
Best,
Robert James