She began her most notable novel,
Charles Auchester, at age sixteen.
Benjamin Disraeli, a British
conservative politician and author, who served twice as
Prime Minister, agreed to help Sheppard. He not only recommended her book to his own publisher, but he also wrote to the aspiring writer, saying, "No greater book will ever be written upon music, and it will one day be recognised as the imaginative classic of divine art." The name "E. Berger" appeared as a
nom de plume on the title page of
Charles Auchester, although it was initially published without an acknowledged author. However, comments on her work were not always complimentary. ==Publications==