Jennifer Chiaverini

Jennifer Chiaverini is a historical fiction author bestselling New York Times author best known for the “Elm Creek Quilts” series in addition to several collections of quilt patterns that were inspired by her novels. Some of Chiaverini’s quilt designs have been featured in “Quilt,” “Country Woman,” “Quiltmaker’s 100 Blocks Volumes 3-5,” while her short fiction has been featured in “Quilters Newsletter” and “Quiltmaker.” She went to the University of Chicago and the University of Notre Dame where she got her Masters in English and Literature. Three courses at the University of Chicago that included “Contemporary Historical Fiction,” “Nineteenth-Century Women Novelists,” and “British Gothic Fiction” helped her understand historical fiction and become interested in authorship. Her time in Chicago also informs her setting two of her novels in the windy city. Her debut novel was “The Quilter’s Apprentice,” which she published in 1999 that became the first of the “Elm Creek Quilts” series. The novels have been described as effective in capturing the texture of life for white and black, rich and poor women during the time periods in which they are set. She currently lives with her husband and two children in Madison, Wisconsin.