MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark & Mysterious Stories

Episode: Inspired By (PODCAST EXCLUSIVE)

Release Date: February 11, 2026
Host: John Allen (MrBallen), Ballen Studios

Overview:

This gripping episode of the MrBallen Podcast delves into the chilling true story of Nancy Crampton Brophy, a struggling romance novelist whose fiction draws heavily on her personal life. As financial desperation and personal ambition mount, Nancy’s life spirals into a real-life story darker than any of her novels. MrBallen explores the psychological unraveling, the murder of Nancy’s beloved husband, Dan, and the shocking twist that fiction had foreshadowed reality in terrifying detail.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Life Imitates Art: Introducing Nancy and Dan

• Nancy’s Background & Struggles

  • Nancy is a 68-year-old romance writer, passionate about her craft, but hasn’t achieved commercial success:
    “She really had not made any real money from writing… those 11 novels… had to be self-published and basically had to be free online for anybody to read them.” (03:00)
  • Sustains her writing through a series of day jobs and is supported by her loving husband, Dan Brophy.

• The Marriage & Domestic Life

  • Dan is a chef and teacher at the Oregon Culinary Institute; he’s known for his gruff exterior but his deep devotion to Nancy (06:20).
  • The couple faces financial hardship, holding out hope that life will improve:
    “With these lower overhead costs, it would likely mean that she would get to quit her day job and just pursue her passion writing…” (08:35)

Mounting Pressures: Emotional and Financial Strain

• Writer’s Block and Despair
  • Nancy’s creative energy dries up, compounded by money problems.
  • Dan adds a second job at an assisted living facility; tensions rise at home due to stress (09:30–11:10).
• Nancy’s Fears for Dan’s Safety
  • Dan’s bluntness at work causes Nancy concern; she fears he’ll anger someone dangerous, especially amid Portland’s increasing crime and homelessness (12:40–13:30).

The Turning Point: The Day of the Murder

• Early Morning Routine & Ominous Feelings

  • On June 2, 2018, Nancy wakes early, restless and creatively blocked, and leaves for a drive to clear her mind (16:00–17:00).
  • Consumed by worry for Dan and her own anxieties, she searches for inspiration in the scenic streets of Portland.

• The Call and Realization

  • Nancy’s writing session is interrupted by a frantic call from Dan’s colleague:
    "She told Nancy that Dan was not at the school, and she had heard there was a shooting at the school this morning.” (21:05)
  • Nancy frantically tries to reach Dan, races to the school, and is met with chaos, police, and horrifying confirmation of her worst fears (24:00–26:10).

Unraveling: Aftermath and Shocking Break

• Immediate Aftermath: Grief and Confusion

  • Nancy is thrust into a world of trauma — grieving, fielding questions, and watching police investigations stall (26:25–28:20).
  • Her life falls apart:
    “…Nancy’s life basically fell apart. She wasn’t able to focus on anything. It was like her mind had gone blank from the trauma.” (28:35)

• The Case Grows Cold—Until a Twist

  • Months pass; Nancy attempts to sell her home, but her efforts are stymied by bureaucracy and debt.
  • September 5th: Detectives arrive at Nancy’s house, announcing a break in the case (29:50)*:
    “They found something on the Internet that points to exactly who Dan’s killer is. It would turn out Dan’s killer had actually confessed to their crime on the Internet more than a decade before it happened.” (30:02)

The Chilling Revelation: Fictional Fantasies Become Motive

• The Blog Post: “How to Murder Your Husband”

  • Investigators discover Nancy authored a blog post years prior, detailing how to get away with murdering one’s husband and penned thrillers featuring women killing their adversaries (30:45).
  • The central theme—financial desperation and empowerment through violence—mirrored Nancy’s own life situation.

• Motive and Conviction

  • Driven by fantasy, financial pressure, and the pursuit of her writing ambitions, Nancy murdered Dan for insurance money and the promise of freedom:
    “…Nancy ultimately loved writing more than she loved Dan… she killed Dan basically to…fund the lifestyle that she wanted.” (31:30)
  • The evidence of her “fiction” proves damning; Nancy’s story collapses under the weight of her own words and she receives a life sentence (32:30).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Finding Inspiration in Life:
  “She leaned back into her pillow and just thought about what her character was going through and tried to think if she’d ever gone through anything similar that might inspire, you know, what would need to happen next in the story.” (04:30)

• On Financial Desperation:
  “But about two years ago, they’d gotten really behind on credit card debt, and that extra debt threw everything else out of whack… at one point, they actually had not even been able to afford their mortgage.” (08:10)

• On the Fateful Decision:
  “…her big solve was just go shoot Dan to death in his school and all your problems are solved.” (31:55)

Timeline & Timestamps for Key Events

• [03:00] — Introduction to Nancy’s literary career
• [06:20] — Nancy and Dan's relationship dynamic
• [08:35] — Financial problems escalate
• [12:40] — Nancy’s anxiety for Dan’s safety
• [16:00] — Morning routines and Nancy’s writer’s block
• [21:05] — Nancy receives news of a shooting at Dan's school
• [24:00] — Chaos at the school, Nancy is informed of Dan’s death
• [26:25–28:20] — Aftermath and impact on Nancy
• [29:50] — Detectives reveal a break in the case
• [30:45] — Discovery of the blog post “How to Murder Your Husband”
• [31:30] — Motive explained; Nancy’s conviction
• [32:30] — Sentencing to life in prison

Episode Tone

MrBallen’s storytelling is empathetic, methodical, and suspenseful, leading listeners through the emotional depth of loss, mounting tension, and ultimately, the harrowing intersection of fiction and reality. The episode’s dark irony and shocking twist exemplify MrBallen’s signature style—true crime that is indeed strange, dark, and mysterious, yet always human at its core.

Conclusion

This episode lays bare the dangers of blurring fiction and reality—and warns of the destructive power of unchecked obsession. In MrBallen’s words:
“…some stories are better left untold.” (01:00)