He was also the coordinator of humanities courses for the summer sessions at the Complutense University of Madrid. From 1985 to 1996 he worked at the newspapers Cambio 16 and Diario 16, where he became deputy director  and head of the culture and entertainment sections, as well as the literary and cultural supplements. In 1996 he joined the Círculo de Bellas Artes as managing director. In 2004 he became director of the Instituto Cervantes, and in July 2007 he was appointed Cultural Minister of Spain, a post he held until April 2009. He has published more than thirty books, primarily essays (nonfiction), prose, and poetry. His poetry has appeared in numerous anthologies and has been translated into several languages. In 2005 he published the book of essays En honor de Hermes, the poetry collection En el mar de ánforas, and the novel Fuga de amor. In 2006 he published the poetry anthology El rumor del tiempo. He was awarded the medal of the Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Charles III. He was named a Chevalier of  the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres  of the French governement. He was honored by the Italian government with the Cavaliere di Gran Croce de la Orden al Mérito medal and awarded the highest honor of Chile, the O’HigginsGold Medal. He was awarded the Castelao Medal of Galicia.He is currently the director of The International Center for the Research, Development, and Innovation in Reading/Casa de Lector.