One of Hawthorne's best-known and respected novels is The Scarlet Letter (1850).

Hawthorne self-published his first novel Fanshawe in 1828.

Following the publication of The House of the Seven Gables, Hawthorne completed two additional novels: The Blithedale Romance (1852) and The Marble Faun (1860).

Herman Melville and Hawthorne shared a brief friendship from 1850 until 1856. The two reviewed each other's work publicly and even after Hawthorne's death, Melville continued to read and annotate Hawthorne's work. Melville's character Vine in his long poem Clarel: A Poem and Pilgrimage in the Holy Land (published by Northwestern University Press in 1991) is believed to be based on Hawthorne.

Another poem by Herman Melville that is believed to be about Hawthorne is "Monody," which first appeared in Timoleon (published by Folcroft Library Editions in 1976) and can also be found in American Poetry : The Nineteenth Century : Herman Melville to Trumbull Stickney...