MRM Project Feature: Dr. Harold J. Berry Publishing Project

Dr. Harold J. Berry has taught and preached the Bible since he was seventeen years old, a faithful minister of the Word whose decades of study and service have left a legacy that extends far beyond any single sermon or classroom. A former professor of Bible and Greek at Grace University of Omaha and longtime personal assistant to Theodore H. Epp, the founder of Back to the Bible, Dr. Berry holds a Master of Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary and a Doctor of Divinity from Grace University.

He has authored many books, each one an invitation to receive, reflect, and respond to the Scriptures he has spent a lifetime studying. There is something quietly remarkable about a 91-year-old scholar who still has more to teach.

About This Recent Project

Our team was introduced to Dr. Berry through Renee Fisher, a self-publishing expert and trusted friend of MRM. Renee had helped Dr. Berry navigate the publishing process for a number of his books over the years, working alongside our amazing designer Nelly Murariu to bring his covers and interiors to life. When Renee’s own season of life called her to step back from client work, she wanted to make sure Dr. Berry would be in good hands. So she reached out to Mandy directly to make the introduction and walk us through the rhythm she had established with him, which allowed us to pick up where she left off. We are grateful for Renee’s trust, and for the care she took in ensuring continuity for her author.

Hebrews: Daily Scriptures to Receive, Reflect, and Respond

The first project we completed with Dr. Berry was Hebrews: Daily Scriptures to Receive, Reflect, and Respond—a devotional study walking readers through one of the most theologically rich letters in the New Testament.

Hebrews is a book that insists on a single, sweeping truth: Jesus is better. Better than the angels, better than the law, better than any earthly priest or sacrifice. Dr. Berry’s volume draws readers into that argument with warmth and clarity, structured as daily readings designed to be received, reflected upon, and responded to in faith.

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It is worth noting that Dr. Berry’s situation is a bit different from our typical publishing partnerships here at Market Refined Media & Publishing. He already had his own publishing imprint, Ichthus Charis, established long before our involvement, along with his own ISBNs and existing presence on Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing. He was not in need of our full publishing methodology, and our imprint was not part of the picture. What he needed was a knowledgeable, reliable team to handle the behind-the-scenes work of preparing, designing, and publishing his books so that he could focus on what he does best: writing them.

While self-publishing support is not the primary way we serve our publishing clients, it is something we are able to offer when the client and the project warrant it. Dr. Berry’s body of work, his established publishing rhythm, and the quality of the books themselves made it a clear fit.

Pre-Design Work

For both projects, our team provided the same core package of self-publishing support services, tailored to fit smoothly into the publishing rhythm Dr. Berry and Renee had already established.

Because Dr. Berry already has an editor he trusts, we did not include manuscript edits in our scope of work. Randi simply performed a light proofread of each manuscript, only what was necessary to aid in preparing the documents for our designer. Dr. Berry sends his work in separate Word files that need to be compiled into a single file and properly formatted for the design.

Once Randi completed that file assembly and formatting, she passed the new document on to Nelly, along with any design notes or keywords Dr. Berry had relayed in his correspondence.

Cover and Interior Design & Typesetting

Nelly then developed the full design package for each book, including the print cover, print interior, and eBook files, all formatted for Kindle Direct Publishing. For both Hebrews and Luke, Volume 1, the cover direction drew from Dr. Berry’s thoughtfully detailed design notes, which were rooted in the imagery and language of each book of the Bible.

As part of the continued publishing and design rhythm between Dr. Berry, Renee, and Nelly, both books’ interior design followed the same uniform structure and included similar layouts and fonts. Cover art from each design was also tactfully and professionally integrated into the interior designs as well, a trademark of Nelly’s excellent work.

Luke, Volume 1: Daily Scriptures to Receive, Reflect, and Respond

Before the Hebrews project had even fully wrapped, Dr. Berry was already ready for the next one, which is exactly the kind of momentum we love to see.

Luke, Volume 1: Daily Scriptures to Receive, Reflect, and Respond follows the same beloved series format, this time guiding readers through the opening chapters of Luke’s Gospel. Written by a physician, Luke’s account of the life of Jesus is rich with compassion, precision, and care for people on the margins. Dr. Berry’s volume invites readers to encounter that same Jesus, the One who came to seek and to save the lost, through a full series of structured daily devotional readings.

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Publishing & Optimization

As a courtesy to Dr. Berry, Mandy performed abbreviated metadata research for both titles, using AI-assisted tools to develop optimized keywords and product categories for each Amazon listing, giving both books their best opportunity for discoverability and reach.

Once the design and publishing files were finalized, Mandy then provided the necessary technical support throughout the KDP publishing process, ensuring each book was uploaded, formatted, and released properly, inside Dr. Berry’s account. Because there was no preset release date or time-sensitive marketing campaign, we were also able to utilize KDP’s scheduling feature for the print products and set the Kindle versions for preorder so both formats could publish on the same day, without our immediate assistance or oversight.

What Dr. Berry had to say…

When Dr. Berry received his first shipment of author copies, he reached out to share his approval.

“Everything looks great! Thanks for your work on this. I look forward to having you work on the next book.”

His note meant a great deal to us. There is something deeply meaningful about supporting an author whose work has spanned a lifetime. We are grateful to Renee for the introduction, and to Dr. Berry for trusting us to carry the work forward.