Interview with Nancy O'Berry

Author Nancy O’Berry

Today I’m interviewing one of my critique partners and someone I like to call my friend. Now before I ask Nancy questions so you can all get to know her a little better, I’m going to tell you a little story.

Sometime last summer, Nancy and I hooked up over at The Trellis at The Wild Rose Press. Funny thing is… In this critique group you are asked what romance genre you write and what you’d like to critique. If I’m not mistaken I wrote down that I really didn’t care much for westerns at the time, and Nancy really didn’t do erotic. Well to make a long story short, Nancy wanted a second set of eyes to look at a historical western and I went ahead and raised my hand. She sent me a few chapters which I really liked and we started exchanging regular e-mails. Then one night, via Instant Messenger, Nancy chimed in and said.. “Oh, oh, oh… I have a great idea about three women working in a brothel. One is named Faith, the other Hope and the last, Charity.” She went on to send me her opening scene of Faith’s story. At this point I screamed over the internet – well as much as one can on-line. “Stop working on your current WIP and write these stories.” I mean come on folks, the women working the oldest profession in the book whose names are Faith, Hope and Charity? What’s not to love about that?

And so the birth, as I see it, of the Sweetbriar Academy was born.

So please welcome, Nancy O’Berry. And yes, you heard it right. Nancy will randomly pick a winner out of all who post a comment on this blog for a free download of Having Faith. I believe she’ll be drawing a name at ‘High Noon’ December 13th. Grin. Virginia time.

Welcome Nancy, why don’t you tell the cyber world a little about you.

I am a wife, mother, and grandmother. My husband and I have been married for over 30 years. We have three children a girl, and two boys. Our house is never dull. One son is still at home, believes he’s Ben Cartwright has been raising cows in my backyard. The last bunch would not get in the cattle trailer to go off to “THE SALE” so I had to get them in there. I told him no more unless I could keep them. So we have two heifers, Abilene and Esmeralda.

I have been writing for many years without the courage to send to an editor or agent until 2006. I belong to an online chapter of RWA and another chapter that meets once a month near the mall in Chesapeake, Virginia. I have written a fantasy story about mermaids finding love and these three stories taking place in the 1870’s with that western feel. There are many others on my computer in various stages of completion so I do suffer from writers ADD.

I have a critique group and Catherine is one of those folks who keeps me on the straight and narrow. I am working on a group for authors to promote their work and for readers and fans. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nancyoberryromance/



Tell us about Having Faith.

Wait, I have to open my fan because to talk about Faith, one has to have the presence of a southern belle. Ah, yes, Faith.

Faith is an interesting concept. I wanted to do a story about a woman set in a historical period but the morals were so constricting. It was considered a Victorian no no for women to even enjoy sex but you could not allow your husband to forgo using your body because it made a man unsettled. Quite a contradiction, so in this quandary, I created Sweetbrier Academy a high end brothel that served gentlemen in the class of Leland Stanford, Diamond Jim Brady and such. I wanted then to have a comfortable feel so I set them from the south.

I had done some research on the Civil War, or what my grandmother called the “Late Great Unpleasantness” and found that General Butler or the Beast as he was referred to when he left Hampton Virginia to take control of New Orleans placed an military law against fraternizing with “loose women”. “Nawlins” as we southerners call it has always been a mystical place for high romance so such edicts would have cut into “the business”. Truth be told, the “ladies” had his likeness put in the bottom of chamber pots in order to relieve themselves on his face and often saved the full pots to toss on the Union soldiers as they went by. Hence poor Miss Opal and her “ladies” decided that it might be a bit more profitable to move to the Wyoming territory and set the tale just after the War of Rebellion.

In this story, Faith has been given the chance to find a sponsor or a paramour that will provide her with money for a year or longer. Miss Benedict gets together a card game with several men from the railroad that have very large pockets. The game will be played in the backroom of the house away from distractions. The winner of the last hand wins a night with Faith.

There is a slight hitch in Miss Benedicts’ plan when her own paramour Howard Stetson comes up a man short. Big John the bouncer is sent out into the house to find another hand. The card player chosen is none other than a Calvary officer, Major Abrams. Quite a spit and polish dandy he is. Yet, he has been rather rough with the women and his reputation precedes him. In the mix of gamblers, a young man by the name of Thaddeus Oakley stands out. There is an immediate attraction between he and Faith that rankles the Major. Of course, Mr. Oakley fought for the Southern cause which doesn’t help his standings in the Major’s eyes. As luck will have it these two gentlemen will be the last two players pitted for the pot.

Discretion will not allow me to reveal the ending. However being the first in the series, Faith will have a promise of a happy ending, but to find out for sure, I’m afraid the reader my have to pick up a copy of Hope to see.

Having Faith will come out at Red Rose Publishing on December 11th, for $2.99.


How soon can we expect Hope and Charity’s stories?

Both Hope and Charity are at the editors now. I hope to be editing the second book through the holidays and have it ready for release in the New Year, sometime in January. Charity is a much longer story that Hope so they have each grown as Sweetbrier develops I hope she will be given the go ahead by February. But you will have to check to see. Charity right now is the only multicultural character I have done.



Where else can we find you on-line?

Oh my dear, I am around. You can get find me at my website.
On the second pages are several free reads one called the HOLD UP that was featured on LASR another TEXAS WALTZ was featured on Coffeetime Romance

Please feel free to get in touch with me at Ms. Opal's Myspace.
or at my MySpace.
my blog is
I love to hear from readers.

Here is a bit of what you’ll see in Having Faith.


In side the room, she moved in deliberate slow motion pulling out the drawer and replaced the new deck of cards on the table. The pot seemed to shimmer ominously in the lamp light. The fun of the evening soiled by the argument and crass words, Faith wondered what Miss Benedict could possibly be saying to each man.

Her unsteady hand tipped the decanter pouring the sweet wine into the fluted glass. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and tilted the goblet back allowing the drink to slide between her lips. The taste sweet, she felt the false sense of warmth move along her backbone. She didn’t want to prolong the end. If the winner proved to be the Major, the night would be one long ordeal.

Dropping her head she took a deep ragged breath. “Please, let it be Oakley,” she prayed placing the glass on the tray. It’s just a job. She told herself, you must not think anything more than it’s just a job. A way to gain my future. As the door opened, Faith did her best to plaster a smile upon her lips and greeted the players.

Neither Mr. Oakley nor Major Abrams looked her in the eye. Faith glanced to the older gentlemen. Mr. Stetson gave her a reassuring wink. She felt a bit of relief. As the men mulled around their chairs, the door opened one last time and Miss Benedict entered.