Australian literature: Short stories | National Library of Australia (NLA)

Australian literature: Short stories

How to find short stories

Start with the Library Catalogue.

  • choose subject from the drop-down list
  • Type your keywords [for example 'Short stories'] in the search bar

Or choose author from the drop-down list and search for individuals, e.g. Astley, Thea or Bail, Murray.

Selected works

Australian literature Short stories

Fairfax Corporation, Four young boys reading books on top of a stone wall during health week at school, New South Wales, ca. 1930,nla.obj-162139840

Fairfax Corporation, Four young boys reading books on top of a stone wall during health week at school, New South Wales, ca. 1930,nla.obj-162139840

Where to find stories in our online databases

AustLit provides authoritative information on creative and critical works of Australian literature and on more than 700,000 Australian authors and literary organisations. You can find AustLit by visiting our eResources portal and searching for this database under the Browse eResources tab.

In the AustLit database, you can search for an author name in the search box. In the menu on the results page, look under 'Form' and select 'Short stories'. Some may have links to an online version.

If you are a registered member of the National Library you can access AustLit from home.

Case study: Finding a story in a collection or anthology

Have these short stories by author Alan Marshall been published?

  • The Donkey's Hind Legs
  • Kisses for a Quid
  • A Little Son

We can use the AustLit database to find stories by Alan Marshall.

  1. Type 'Alan Marshall' in the Search box. The first author (in blue) has the most published items, so we can start here by selecting the author's name.
  2. Select 'Works by' in the menu, then select 'Short Story' at the right of the page to see a list of 136 stories.
  3. The list is alphabetical, so we can scroll through the pages to find the titles:

    • The Donkey's Hind Legs appears in: These Are My People : Selected Short Stories
    • Kisses for a Quid is not listed, however Kisses a Quid a Piece appears in several collections including These Are My People
    • A Little Son appears in: These Are My People : Selected Short Stories 

    AustLit also shows other collections in which Alan Marshall's stories were published. The Donkey's Hind Legs is not in any other collection.

  4. A search of Trove shows a number of libraries around Australia where These Are My People : Selected Short Stories is available, or if necessary we can request an interlibrary loan.

Australian literary magazines

Literary magazines can be a source of original fiction, poetry, essays and non-fiction. Selected titles are:

Recent issues of some popular titles are on display in the Main Reading Room.

Selected titles are also available online through Informit, by visiting our eResources portal and searching for Informit under the Browse eResources tab. In Informit, see under the ‘Browse publications’ tab for a list of titles.

Tilting at windmills : the literary magazine in Australia 1968-2012 by Phillip Edmonds

From the cover: "Australian literary magazines...have very often been ahead of their time and some of the agendas they have pursued have become 'central' to representations where once they were marginal. Broadly, 'little' magazines have often been more influential than their small circulations would first indicate, and the author's argument is that they have played a valuable role in the promotion of Australian literature."

Featured resource

Australian literature The Best Australian Stories

The best Australian stories : a ten-year collection, Collingwood, Vic. : Black Inc, 2011

The best Australian stories : a ten-year collection, Collingwood, Vic. : Black Inc, 2011

This book takes a decade of Best Australian Stories and selects the most outstanding short fiction by the country’s finest writers. These stories range widely in style and subject matter: there is drama and comedy, subtlety and extravagance, tales of suspense, love, fantasy, grief and revenge. Together they showcase the strength and diversity of Australian fiction at its very best.

Find this book in a library near you

Related links

Australian short story writers - A Wikipedia page which lists Australian writers of short stories who have articles on Wikipedia

Spineless Wonders - Explore the site, especially under Categories and Archives, for Australian short stories and writers

 

In this guide

Two men, one on a ladder, looking at books on large bookshelf at the State Library of Victoria

Mark Strizic, Searching for books at the State Library of Victoria, January 1967, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-140508667

Australian literature research guide

A guide to finding Australian literature resources

Research guide
black and white photo of two men shaking hands while two schoolboys look on

Fairfax Corporation, Two men shaking hands in front of a schoolboy holding two trophies and another with three books at Sydney Boys' High School, Sydney, 28 December 1931, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-161791200

Australian literature: Awards

How to find information about Australian literature awards.

Research guide
Finding australian literature The Burning

Williamson, Geordie, The burning library : our great novelists lost and found. Melbourne : Text Publishing, 2012

Australian literature: Book reviews

Book reviews appear in newspapers and scholarly journals. To locate these you can use a title search of a particular periodical, such as Australian Book Review.

Research guide
black and white photo of two girls sitting on the ground, wearing white and reading books

Fairfax Corporation, Editor Constance Robertson's daughters reading in garden, Sydney, 1 July 1932, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-162303890

Australian literature: Children's literature

How to find children's books and information about children's books

Research guide
Findng australian literature Drama

Aitken, A., photographer, On the set of the film Two minutes silence, New South Wales, 12 May 1932, nla.obj-162472775

Australian literature: Drama

How to find Australian drama

Research guide
Finding australian literature - sams bush journey

Morgan, Sally and Kwaymullina, Ezekiel, Sam's Bush Journey, Surry Hills, N.S.W. : Little Hare Books, 2009

Australian literature: Indigenous

How to find information about Indigenous literature

First Australians
Australian poetry Banjo Paterson
Australian literature: Poetry

A guide to finding Australian poetry

Research guide
cover of book 'The Cambridge history of Australian literature'

Peter Pierce, (2009), The Cambridge history of Australian literature, https://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn4557384

Australian literature: FAQs

Browse example questions received by the Library. Answers were provided by Reader Services staff using the resources in this guide.

Research guide
Page published: 12 Dec 2023

Need help?

Our librarians are here to guide you.

Ask a librarian