My name is Meredith Allard, and I’m an author, reader, and curious researcher exploring writing, reading, history, food, and the everyday details that connect us to the past.
Although fiction remains at the heart of my work, my interests have always extended beyond novels. I love exploring the history behind the stories we tell—the books people read, the food they ate, the traditions they followed, and the ordinary details of daily life. Here on my website, I write about literature, history, historical research, food, recipes, and the joys of paying attention to the world around us. My upcoming food history project, The Antiquarian Spoon, brings these interests together through recipes and stories from the past, beginning with the food of colonial New England and Salem.
I’m best known for the paranormal historical Loving Husband Series and the Victorian novel When It Rained at Hembry Castle, which was named a Best Historical Novel by IndieReader. My prequel, Down Salem Way, earned the B.R.A.G. Medallion and was a semi-finalist for the Chaucer Award in Early Historical Fiction.
My latest novel, The Professor of Eventide, is a Gothic literary mystery set at an elite college where three murders draw a professor into a carefully constructed design—one that forces him to confront both the past he cannot outrun and a nature he has long concealed.
I’ve also written two nonfiction books for writers. Painting the Past: A Guide for Writing Historical Fiction was a #1 New Release on Amazon in Authorship and Creativity Self-Help. The Swirl and Swing of Words: Embracing the Writing Life was also named a #1 New Release on Amazon in Authorship, Creativity Self-Help, and Authorship Reference. My short stories and articles have appeared in journals such as Moondance, Muse Apprentice Guild, The Paumanok Review, Wild Mind, The Maxwell Digest, Writers Weekly, ViewsHound, The Honor Society, The Huffington Post, Introvert, Dear, and Anne R. Allen’s blog.
In 2000, I founded The Copperfield Review, an award-winning literary journal for readers and writers of historical fiction, and I remained the executive editor until the journal closed in 2023. I’ve been a guest speaker at The History Quill’s Conference for Writers of Historical Fiction and Rachel Thompson’s Lit Mag Love course.
I received my BA and MA degrees in English from CSU Northridge and my PhD in Education from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. I’ve taught writing to students ages five to 75, and I’ve taught education, creative writing, and writing historical fiction courses through Learning Tree University, UNLV, the UNLV Continuing Education Extension Program, the Henderson Writers Group, and the Las Vegas Writers Conference.
I read everything from historical fiction to literary fiction, from the classics to nonfiction. I love baking, cooking, reading, journaling, art journaling, and spending time in coffee shops. I’m a Los Angeles Dodgers fan and an amateur food historian, and when I’m not reading, researching, or cooking meals from the past, I can usually be found in the hills of Southern Nevada with my cats and a cup of coffee.