Teaching Carlson taught at
The Hotchkiss School in Connecticut, where he began his first novel. He became a professor of English at
Arizona State University in 1985, teaching creative writing to undergraduates and graduates, and ultimately becoming director of its Creative Writing program. Carlson then moved to the
University of California, Irvine. Carlson was the director of UCI's Creative Writing program until his resignation in 2018. In August 2018, Carlson was named as having credible evidence of having committed sexual misconduct with a minor student in the 1970s. The report, prepared by the law firm Locke Lord, named seven teachers in all. ''
Harper's Magazine, Esquire, and GQ. In addition to his fiction, Carlson has also written for The New York Times Book Review and the Los Angeles Times Book Review''. He wrote of his first "good" story: "I did not understand my story; many times you don’t. It’s not your job to understand or evaluate or edit your work when you first emerge from it. Your duty is to be in love with it, and that defies explanation." (
Ron Carlson Writes A Story). The short story "Keith", from
The Hotel Eden, was
adapted into a film by
Todd Kessler (2008). The independent film starred
Jesse McCartney and
Elisabeth Harnois. ==Awards==