Remembering Babylon, set mainly in a mid-nineteenth-century settlement in Queensland, is a compressed epic, centering on the theme of exile and the strange challenge posed by one who, like William Buckley, had lived with the Aborigines, becoming ‘a white black man.’ It was first published in 1993. This subseries consists of six folders of notes, handwritten drafts, three typescripts with many handwritten corrections and additions, publishers’ proofs with many corrections, and a re-typed transcript with corrections throughout.

In The Great World Malouf enters familiar Australian territory with a story of war experience and mateship. The narrative contrasts the personalities of two men and their experiences in the Second World War, Digger Keen, the archetypal, taciturn Australian, gifted with a photographic memory, and Vic Curran, whose ambition and drive take him from poverty to the top of the business world. The Great World was first published in 1990 and won the Miles Franklin Award in 1991, the Adelaide Festival Award and two international awards, the 1991 Commonwealth Prize for fiction and the Prix Femina Etranger in France for the best foreign novel. This subseries consists of a draft early version of the novel, originally titled ‘The Memorialists’, the first handwritten draft of the novel, and a typescript draft in five parts with many handwritten corrections and additions.

The collection of autobiographical essays, 12 Edmonstone Street, A Place in Tuscany, A Foot in the Stream, and The Kyogle Line were published as 12 Edmonstone Street, by Chatto and Windus in 1985. This subseries consists of a note by David Malouf originally intended to introduce the book, drafts of 12 Edmondstone Street with editorial material, and drafts of A Place in Tuscany, A Foot in the Stream, and The Kyogle Line. Handwritten and typescript drafts, handwritten emendations, white-out corrections, and cut and paste inserts (attached with sticky tape, now degrading).

Antipodes is a collection of short stories published by Malouf in 1985. This subseries consists of corrected typescripts of twelve of the thirteen stories in the collection. Some stories have more than one draft.

The central figure of Harland’s Half Acre, Frank Harland, is another study of the artist-figure which continues to intrigue Malouf. Partly structured like Johnno and An Imaginary Life around two opposite individuals, the novel returns to the lush, exotic world of Queensland with a chronological narrative covering several decades. From his youth Harland is obsessed with the need to reclaim his family’s lost inheritance, the pastoral land with the nostalgic name Killarney. The dream turns sour when tragedy intervenes but Harland grows to understand that he has created another unexpected but more real legacy in his art. Harland’s Half Acre was first published in 1984. This subseries consists of two notebooks of 200 pages each with background material, notes and drafts, correspondence, various typescript drafts with handwritten corrections and additions, and a complete typescript of the finished novel.

Eustace, a short story, was first published in 1982 with the novella Child's Play and short story The Prowler. Further editions were published in 1983 and 1999, and Eustace was included in Malouf’s The Complete Stories published in 2007. There are two typescript drafts in this subseries. The first is an early typescript draft, 10 leaves, extensive handwritten emendations, word count on last page, and undated. The second is a typescript draft, 21 leaves, including the title page, handwritten emendations, word count on last page, and undated.

The Prowler, a short story, was first published in 1982 with the novella Child's Play and short story Eustace. Further editions were published in 1983 and 1999, and The Prowler was included in Malouf’s The Complete Stories published in 2007. There are three drafts in this subseries. Possibly the first draft is: typescript, on 25 x 20.5 cm paper, 11 leaves, extensive handwritten emendations in biro, unnumbered pages, incomplete, and undated. Second draft: typescript, on 23.5 x 14.5 cm, extensive handwritten emendations in biro, unnumbered pages, last page has word count and note '2nd draft Sept 12-13-14 '79). Draft typescript: 34 leaves, first leaf has handwritten title 'The Prowler', handwritten emendations, 29.5 x 22 cm, and undated.

Fly Away Peter is a novella, set in Queensland before the First World War, the story of Jim Sadler, a dedicated bird watcher, Ashley Crowther, his employer and Imogen Harcourt, an eccentric English photographer. It was first published in 1981 with Child’s Play under the title The Bread of Time to Come. It was republished in 1982 as Fly Away Peter. This subseries includes “original first hand-written drafts of Fly Away Peter (usually referred to as Birds)” [D.M.]; rewritten first draft in Brisbane; first typescript draft; second typescript draft; rewritten passages in second typescript draft; chapters 8, 10, 15 of first typescript reworked and replaced and afterword to Fly Away Peter.

Fly Away Peter was the winner of the 1982 Age Book of the Year Award.

Child’s Play is an account of the experiences of an Italian terrorist and his special interest in his victim. It was first published in 1981 with another novella, The Bread of Time to Come (later changed to Fly Away Peter). It was republished in 1982 with two short stories, Eustace and The Prowler. This subseries includes manuscript drafts for original first draft, first typescript draft, and second typescript draft. All the drafts have explanatory notes by David Malouf.

An Imaginary Life is a novel dealing with the last years of the Roman poet Ovid in exile and his strange relationship with a wolf-child. It was first published in 1978. Originally the title was 'Letters from Pontus'. Includes letters from George Braziller Inc., New York relating to the publication of this novel, typescript drafts of the novel, editorial markup by literary argent Curtis Brown of the final draft, and changes for final draft.