One of the best parts of my new book is that it involves a fictitious band, The Broken. Part of the story is their rise to fame and subsequent fall from grace following an attempted murder/suicide of two teenage boys, but more of it involves the people in the band, and their own personal struggles with life, fame, sexuality, and more.

What I like about it is that it gives me a chance to not only explore my youthful fantasy of being in a famous rock band, but it allows me to pretend that I’m actually in the band – because part of the book is told through the band’s songs.

And that means I get to write said songs! Of course, since there isn’t any actual music, it’s more like poetry, but this is also something I haven’t done in many years, and it’s kind of exciting! (There’s a separate part of me that wants to return to my musical past and actually write the songs, too, but that might be for another time.)

The book opens with The Broken’s most famous – and infamous – song, Where I Go. Written by lead singer Malcolm James, it is the song that was taken to task after the murder/suicide of Justin Smith and Patrick Griffith. I’ve posted it here before, but I kind of like it, and so I’d like to share it with you again:

This is where I go
When there’s nothing else to know
When there’s nothing else to feel
What you told me was a lie
And I know that I’m not real
In your eyes

This is what I need
When there’s nothing left to bleed
And I’ve given up a life
To be right there by your side
But you wouldn’t even try
In my eyes

I don’t know what’s left of me
You give me nowhere else to be
I’ll take that gun and find release
From you
And me

Where I Go, The Broken

It’s an early effort, but I’m quite pleased – it sounds like it could be from an early nineties nu-metal song, which is what it’s supposed to be.

In any case, there are more songs to come, and I’ll be sure to share them as I write them. I’m excited for the future of The Broken!