Dr. Marcela Fuentes joins SMU English as the inaugural Sterling R.E. Havens Endowed Professor in Creative Writing Fiction

DALLAS (SMU) – Acclaimed novelist and essayist Dr. Marcela Fuentes will join SMU’s Department of English as the inaugural Sterling R.E. Havens Endowed Professor in Creative Writing Fiction.

Fuentes joins SMU from Texas Christian University, where she has been an associate professor of creative writing. Born and raised in Del Rio on the Texas–Mexico border, she writes fiction rooted in Tejano culture, family, and the borderlands. Her debut novel, Malas (Viking, 2024), was a Good Morning America Book Club selection and winner of the American Book Award.  

Fuentes earned a Master of Fine Arts from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and a Ph.D. from Georgia State University. Previously, she held the James C. McCreight Fiction Fellowship at the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing and earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin.

“Dr. Marcela Fuentes will strengthen our creative writing program in profound ways,” said Dr. Christopher González, Jacob and Frances Sanger Mossiker Endowed Chair in English at Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences. “Her expertise in fiction, Latinx literature, literature of the Southwest and the literary arts will enrich our curriculum, inspire our students and expand opportunities for collaboration across the department.” 

At SMU, Fuentes will play a central role in advancing the University’s commitment to creative writing and literary culture. As the inaugural Havens Professor, she will help shape the future of fiction at SMU while mentoring graduate and undergraduate writers and contributing to the department’s growing engagement with the literary traditions of Texas and the borderlands. 

“I am thrilled to join the faculty in the vibrant English department at SMU and look forward to being part of a dynamic campus community that values artistic vision, student success, and scholarly innovation,” said Fuentes. 

Dr. Fuentes will officially join the department on August 1, 2026, immediately bringing new energy to the SMU English creative writing program. 

SMU is the nationally ranked teaching and research university in the dynamic city of Dallas, and a member of the prestigious Atlantic Coast Conference. SMU’s alumni, faculty and more than 12,000 students in eight degree-granting schools demonstrate an entrepreneurial spirit as they lead change in their professions, communities and the world.