Monica Ferris is the pen name of Mary Monica Pulver, an American author well-known for her cozy and historical mystery novels. She has also written under her maiden name, Margaret Frazer, as well as Mary Kuhfeld and Margaret of Shaftesbury. Born in Terre Haute, Indiana, Pulver spent her later childhood and early adult life in Wisconsin, eventually becoming a journalist in the U.S. Navy for six and a half years. She later attended the University of Wisconsin at Madison and is now married to a museum curator.
Pulver sold her first short story, "Pass the Word," to Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine in 1983 and has since published over two dozen short stories in various anthologies and magazines. She has appeared in numerous anthologies, including The Mammoth Book of Historical Detectives, The Mammoth Book of Historical Whodunnits, and Shakespearean Mysteries. Her first mystery novel, Murder at the War, was published in 1987 and was nominated for an Anthony Award for Best First Novel. She has since written several series, including the Peter Brichter series and the Needlecraft Mysteries series, as well as collaborating with Gail Frazer on the first six Sister/Dame Frevisse novels.
Pulver is perhaps best known for her Needlecraft Mysteries series, which features amateur needleworking sleuth Betsy Devonshire. The series is set in Excelsior, Minnesota, and the first book, Crewel World, was published in 1998. The series has been highly successful, with all of the books going to multiple printings, and Pulver has won a place on national and local best-seller lists, including USA Today and the independent mystery bookstore compilation. She is a member of Sisters in Crime, a national organization that promotes women who write mystery fiction, and remains a paid speaker on the life of a mystery author. Pulver also volunteers for Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation and is an active participant in the Society for Creative Anachronism, an international organization dedicated to researching and re-creating the arts and skills of pre-17th-century Europe.