  Using Virtual Observatory tools, we cross-matched the Carlsberg Meridian 14
and the 2MASS Point Source catalogs to select candidate nearby bright M dwarfs
distributed over ~ 25,000 deg^2. Here, we present reconnaissance low-resolution
optical spectra for 27 candidates that were observed with the Intermediate
Dispersion Spectrograph at the 2.5m Isaac Newton Telescope (R ~ 1600). We
derived spectral types from a new spectral index, R, which measures the ratio
of fluxes at 7485-7015 A and 7120-7150 A. We also used VOSA, a Virtual
Observatory tool for spectral energy distribution fitting, to derive effective
temperatures and surface gravities for each candidate. The resulting 27 targets
were M dwarfs brighter than J = 10.5 mag, 16 of which were completely new in
the Northern hemisphere and 7 of which were located at less than 15 pc. For all
of them, we also measured H{\alpha} and Na I pseudo-equivalent widths,
determined photometric distances, and identified the most active stars. The
targets with the weakest sodium absorption, namely J0422+2439 (with X-ray and
strong H{\alpha} emissions, J0435+2523, and J0439+2333, are new members in the
young Taurus-Auriga star-forming region based on proper motion, spatial
distribution, and location in the color-magnitude diagram, which reopens the
discussion on the deficit of M2-4 Taurus stars. Finally, based on proper motion
diagrams, we report on a new wide M-dwarf binary system in the field, LSPM
J0326+3929EW.
