Another of Defoe's fictional biographies, The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders, was published in 1722. It is the story of an orphan, Moll Flanders, who is brought up in the house of the Mayor of Colchester. Moll leads an interesting life as she is involved with a succession of men, journeys to Virginia, returns to England, becomes destitute and, consequently, a prosperous thief.

A Journal of the Plague Year (1722) exhibits Defoe's talents as a journalist. The book details the devastating effects of a crippling plague.

Defoe's Roxana, or the Fortunate Mistress, (1724) chronicles the story of Roxana. The daughter of French Huguenots, Roxana and her children are abandoned by her husband. Along with her trustworthy maid, Amy, Roxana leads a life of adventure and dissipation.

One of the more famous Robinsonades grew out of the bedtime stories which Johann...