Bert McCracken, frontman of The Used, has just announce the upcoming release of his book, In Love and Death: The Lost Notebook. Composed of handwritten lyrics, poems, sketches, and personal reflections from nearly twenty years ago, it will be available in a signed, limited edition beginning late Fall 2025. An unsigned non-slipcase standard edition will also be on sale. Keep reading for more details.
Signed pre-orders are available here: https://rarebirdlit.com/
“This notebook is a time capsule,” McCracken says. “It’s a snapshot of who I was, what I went through, and how those emotions turned into the music we made. Getting it back brought a rush of memories—pain, joy, chaos, and everything in between.”
Originally thought to be lost forever, McCracken’s personal notebook — used during the creation of The Used’s seminal 2004 album In Love and Death — resurfaced unexpectedly online and was safely returned to him after two decades. Now, for the first time, McCracken opens the pages to share the raw thoughts and formative writings that would evolve into some of the band’s most beloved songs.
More than a behind-the-scenes look at one of emo’s most influential records, In Love and Death: The Lost Notebook is an artifact of emotional honesty and artistic fearlessness. Alongside raw, unfiltered entries from McCracken’s early twenties are evocative doodles, scraps of lyrics, and deeply personal reflections on grief, addiction, creativity and resilience.
“I never thought I’d publish a book—unless it was weird, postmodern fiction,” McCracken reflects. “But when I found this notebook again, I knew I had to share it. I was fearless then. And there’s magic in what survived.”
Bert McCracken is the lead singer and lyricist of the multi-platinum rock band The Used. Known for his powerful voice and unflinching emotional honesty, McCracken has been a major influence in alternative music for over two decades. In Love and Death: The Lost Notebook is his first published book.
The Used helped define the sound of a generation with their chaotic and melodic cacophony. The band stood tall against the tests of time and trends, now 25 years into its journey stronger and more passionately purposeful than ever. Songs like “The Taste of Ink,” “Pretty Handsome Awkward,” “The Bird and the Worm,” and “I Caught Fire” incite massive singalongs in theaters and clubs, at Vans Warped Tour, and at huge festivals worldwide. Over 25 years, they’ve scored four Billboard 200 Top 10 debuts and ten Billboard Hot 100 singles. The Used (2002) and In Love and Death (2004) are certified platinum in the United States, and Lies for the Liars (2007) went gold. Each record is celebrated in 2025 on The Used’s massive 25th-anniversary tour, which features each landmark album played in full across three nights in each city. McCracken and bassist Jeph Howard co-founded The Used in Utah in 2000. Drummer Dan Whitesides joined nearly 20 years ago, and guitarist Joey Bradford has been with the band since 2018. The original incarnation of The Used was born from the conservative isolation, myopic boredom, and restless angst of their crucial formative years spent some 45 miles from Salt Lake City in Orem, Utah.