Nathan Oates, Ph.D.

Professor and Director of Undergraduate Writing Studies
Department of English

I have been teaching creative writing and literature courses in the Department of English at Seton Hall University since 2008. Before arriving at Seton Hall, I earned my Ph.D. from the University of Missouri in English and Creative Writing and my M.A. in Fiction Writing from the Writing Seminars at The Johns Hopkins University. In addition to teaching, I am the Director of Creative Writing for the Creative Writing major, and the Director of the Poetry-in-the-Round reading series.

Alongside my teaching, I am a fiction writer. My debut novel, A Flaw in the Design, was published by Random House in 2023 and my collection of short stories, The Empty House, won the 2012 Spokane Prize. My short stories have been published in many magazines, including the Antioch Review, The Missouri Review, Witness and my work has been included in the anthologies, Best American Mystery Stories 2008, Best American Mystery Stories 2012, and Forty Stories.