He first attracted attention as a writer in 1952 when his play "Cradle of Thunder" was presented by the National Theatre Competition. In 1955, "Summer of the Seventeenth Doll" gained first prize in the Playwright Advisory Board Competition with Oriel Gray’s "The Torrents" and was subsequently presented by the Union Theatre. Lawler played the role of Barney at the premiere of "Summer of the Seventeenth Doll" in 1955. The play was taken up by the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust and presented in all Australian states as well as London and New York. It won the Evening Standard Award for the best new play on the London stage in 1957. Since then it has been translated into many languages and performed in many countries.