Phelan's first published book was the 2005 non-fiction work "Literati". His short story, "Soliloquy for One Dead", appeared in "Griffith Review"s 2006 edition: "The Next Big Thing". His first published novel was "Fox Hunt". His first book, "Literati: Australian Contemporary Literary Figures Discuss Fear, Frustrations and Fame", was released by John Wiley & Sons in 2005. It documents a series of interviews in which Phelan asked questions of a broad range of literary figures in Australia, including Matthew Reilly, Tara Moss, John Marsden, John Birmingham, and Peter Craven.