[8] After being recommended by a QUT tutor, Dalton was hired in 2000 as a writer for Brisbane News, a free weekly magazine.

[3] As of April 2024[update], he works as a staff writer for The Weekend Australian Magazine.

[6][10] In 2018 he published the semi-autobiographical novel Boy Swallows Universe through 4th Estate,[11][12] which was longlisted for the 2019 Miles Franklin Award.

[13] In May 2019 the television adaptation rights for Boy Swallows Universe were secured by Anonymous Content, Chapter One and Hopscotch Features.

[15] The Queensland Theatre Company also developed a play from the novel,[16][17] which premiered in September 2021 at the Brisbane Festival.