We speak to the man behind the Fleetwood Town book, David Mitchell
Living the Dream is due out in early March. The book traces the remarkable rise of Fleetwood Town over the last ten years, delivering six promotions for the Cod Army.
The Club website spoke in depth with author David Mitchell about the publication.
David, when did you start writing the book?
I began to collect material during last summer. The Play-Off win was still fresh in the mind and I was hearing from so many quarters about how remarkable the progress had been over the years that I decided it was time to put pen to paper before somebody else did!
It seemed a logical next step after completing five seasons in the press box covering the Club. My previous book had just been published and it was time for a new project.
How did you collect your information?
The Vice-Chairman, Phil Brown, was the starting point and he gave me many hours of his time. He has written his own book, 'Through Stormy Waters', which covers the Club's history to around the mid-1990's.
Phil has a fantastic recall of the seasons that I was focusing on and his help was invaluable. He has also kept a detailed archive which he made available to me. Beyond that I tried to interview a range of people who covered past and present as well as life on and off the pitch.
There were players, fans, managers, backroom staff, board and administrators. From the chairman down, everyone has been most helpful and I am grateful to Fleetwood Town for giving me full access.
My time on the press team helped because I was familiar with people across the Club. I didn't want it to just go from match to match so I have included a selection of stories as well as special features on some of the people involved.
How did you go about choosing the range of colour pictures?
My aim was find a variety from throughout the period. I had to limit to thirty-two inside the book which wasn't easy plus what I used on the cover.
I needed to include all the successful campaigns and I made a point of looking for images which showed the development of the ground. And then, of course, I had to feature Wembley!
That was difficult in itself because there were so many brilliant images from the day.
And the cover design?
I always had the idea of showing the Wembley celebration across the bottom of the front page and it made sense to have Nathan Pond holding the trophy aloft as he is the player who has been the constant through the whole story.
The publishers came up with the idea of using a ball and different pictures in each panel. I wanted to have skipper Mark Roberts lifting the trophy and the other sections feature a variety of images from through the years as well as the Club crest.
The title is always important. Why Living the Dream?
Both title and dedication reflect the part the Cod Army have played in this story. Living the Dream is a phrase that has been used by fans over the years and the book is dedicated to those who have sadly died during the period.
Chairman Andy Pilley and Nathan Pond feature largely no doubt?
Indeed! There's a special tribute to Pondy and the Chairman has kindly written the foreword for the book. I interviewed both of them and they are never far from the action!
The publication is now available to pre-order. To order, please click here
For further news on the book, click here and read our initial press release about the book.