Novel Notes

Four opinionated bachelors, an endless supply of tobacco, and a complete lack of literary harmony. Welcome to the ultimate satire on how not to write a book.

Following a narrator and his three eccentric, highly opinionated friends: Jephson, Brown, and the remarkably unreliable MacShaughnassy, who decide that the ultimate path to fame and fortune is to collaborate on a definitive, sweeping modern novel.

The problem? None of them can agree on what a novel should actually be. As they gather in comfortable London drawing rooms, their brainstorming sessions rapidly derail into an escalating war of literary philosophies. One friend demands a grim, heartbreaking realist tragedy; another insists on a sensational romance; while MacShaughnassy constantly interrupts the plot to offer unsolicited, highly inaccurate advice on domestic household management.

This clever framing device allows Jerome to treat the reader to a brilliant series of embedded parodies and tales. From mocking the absurd cliches of Victorian ghost stories and high-society dramas to illustrating the sheer impossibility of getting four creative minds to agree on a single plot twist, Jerome skewers the literary tropes of his day with breathtaking wit.

Written in the exact same companionable, banter-heavy style that made Three Men in a Boat a global phenomenon, Novel Notes is a forgotten comic masterpiece. It is a witty and highly imaginative read that will absolutely delight writers, avid readers, and anyone who has ever attempted to complete a group project!