Red Penguin Books recently published Twisted Sister legend Dee Snider’s first fictional novel, Frats. In a new feature at Fortune, Snider talks about his new book, and more. The following is an excerpt from the article...
Dee got the writing bug coming up with the script for the band’s breakthrough 1984 video for “We’re Not Gonna Take It”, in which a stern father berates his teenage son, who then morphs into Snider and engages in cartoonish takedowns of dear old dad.
“I started to teach myself how to write,” he said. “In 1984, everybody was out partying; I was in the dressing room or in the hotel working on writing. I’m not a singer who decided to write a book - or had someone write one for him. I’ve been labouring away, honing the craft.
“I’m not Vince Neil,” Snider said in a swipe at the Motley Crüe singer. “I’m the guy you saw in Washington (where he testified before the U.S. Senate defending heavy metal against allegations it was violent and dangerous for kids), a guy who can put together a sentence, and express himself.”
Read more at Fortune.com.
A Frats book description follows...
The debut novel by Dee Snider... Based on true events.
When young Bobby Kovax unexpectedly moves with his parents to Baldwin, Long Island, the high school hallways of 1972 prove to be littered with boys of all shapes and sizes desperate for one thing and one thing only - to belong. As he ventures ever deeper into the jungle of battling brotherhoods, or self-proclaimed “frats”, hazing ceremonies, broken promises, and his own sense of self lead Bobby down the dark path of joining forces with what he fears the most in order to go on. But how far will he go, and who is he willing to hurt, as he fights to survive?
If you are looking for a daring, disturbingly honest story that examines the pressures of toxic masculinity in the high school hallways, look no further!
Dee Snider is an American singer, songwriter, radio personality, writer, and actor. Frats is Dee’s first novel.
