In several posts, I have referenced that my attendance at Mayberry events was intertwined with my writing and the formation of the publishing company, Liberty Grove Press LLC.
I have been writing what I view as my personal magnum opus on The Andy Griffith Show for many years intermittently. It was always a hobby I revisited upon occasion. I can’t remember when I began working on it, but I remember showing a friend a draft of the first half many years ago. I never worked on this book with a distinct idea of publishing it. The process was for my personal enjoyment.
When I started going to Mayberry Days regularly a few years ago after two previous trips years earlier, I started thinking about the available resources in print for fans of The Andy Griffith Show. I own every book that has been published about the classic shown and all those books together just fill up just a small part of one of my bookshelves in my den.
I decided I would start working harder on the afore-mentioned project I had been sporadically researching and writing for years. I eventually came to accept that if I wanted to release that book, it would be a good many years before it was completed and in the kind of shape I wanted it to be.
I already had ideas for other books about the show and its creators, so I decided to explore writing with a more refined approach. Around that same time, I began writing daily Facebook posts I called Today in Mayberry History which I announced at the 2016 Mayberry Days. Not long after, I also began doing This Week in Mayberry History segments for Allan Newsome’s podcast Two Chairs, No Waiting.
I already had developed some experience in the publishing field. My wonderful father-in-law has owned a publishing company for decades though it is a particular type of publishing. His company primarily publishes books for use in church liturgy for children. A number of years ago after my father-in-law suffered a health scare, my wife and I began co-managing his company. Thus, I already had worked with quite a number of printing companies.
I decided my belief that there were not enough books about The Andy Griffith Show was probably one others shared. And so, I decided that I would release my first book related to the show this year. I announced that decision at the 2017 Mayberry Days.
I wrote the 2019 Mayberry Day-by-Day Flip Book Calendar in the midst of working on a lengthy traditional book about people involved in the series. Thanks to connections and friendships I have made in the Mayberry community, I have even been able to have some chapters of the lengthier book reviewed by their subjects which has been particularly gratifying. For example, the day my younger daughter went into labor with my second grandson, I got a call from Maggie Peterson Mancuso telling how much she loved the chapter she had reviewed.
I had originally hoped to release that book before the holidays but decided several months ago that I wanted to be sure I did the book right and did not want to rush publishing it. Thus, I will instead release it next year.
A number of people have asked me if there will be another Mayberry desk calendar next year. Of course! I will release another with all-new facts which, just like the recent publication, will be tied to each particular day.
And the magnum opus I mentioned? I hope to finish and release it someday. but it’s not the book I will be releasing next year
I truly appreciate the great reception my first calendar flip book has received from Mayberry fans. I have shipped them from Manhattan in New York City to Monterey, California on the Pacific coast. It is more than gratifying to know that my work is reaching fans of the classic show, and that is my ultimate goal and the true reason I formed Liberty Grove Press.