Stow first visited England in 1960 and lived there for a few years, although he returned several times to Australia. "Tourmaline", his fourth novel, was completed in 1962 while he taught in Leeds. In 1964 and 1965 he travelled in North America on a Harkness Fellowship, including a sojourn in Aztec, New Mexico, during which he wrote one of his best known novels, "The Merry-Go-Round in the Sea". While living in Perth (WA) in 1966 he wrote his popular children's book "Midnite".