Nolan Miller (1907 – September 30, 2006) was an American short story writer, novelist, and literary editor. He is best known for serving as the fiction editor of The Antioch Review and for his long tenure as a member of the Antioch College faculty.
Early life and education
Miller was born in Kalida, Ohio, in 1907. He attended Wayne State University, where he received both a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts degree. His favorite authors included Wordsworth, Proust, Joyce, and D. H. Lawrence.
Career
While working as a high school teacher in Detroit, Michigan, Miller wrote short stories. A story published in The Atlantic Monthly prompted Atlantic editor Edward Weeks to recommend Miller as a "writer in residence" at Antioch College. In 1946, Miller joined the faculty at Antioch College, where he served as fiction editor for The Antioch Review and taught creative writing for more than half a century. Notably, television writer Rod Serling wrote the first version of his award-winning script Requiem for a Heavyweight while a student in one of Miller's classes.
Beginning in 1955, Miller edited the New Campus Writing series, which collected creative writing from American colleges. He became the first fiction editor of The Antioch Review in 1965.
Literary works
Miller wrote four novels: Why I Am So Beat (Putnam, 1954), Sarah Belle, Luella Mae, A Moth of Time, and The Merry Innocents. His 1959 short story "A New Life" was included in the O. Henry Prize Awards. His stories also appeared in Collier's and The Saturday Evening Post.
Awards and later life
Miller was a recipient of the Hopwood Award from the University of Michigan. After retiring in 1972, he remained active with The Antioch Review. He died in 2006 at the age of 99 in Yellow Springs, Ohio.
