Arkie's Pilgrimage to the Next Big Thing is Lisa Walker's third novel, following Liar Bird and Sex, Lies and Bonsai (HarperCollins). Lisa grew up in Fiji and Brisbane. She has worked as a cross-country ski instructor, igloo builder, Nepal trekking leader and reef guide. She now works part-time at Northern Rivers Writers Centre. She was a winner in the 2005 ABC Short Story competition and her travel articles and short stories have appeared in publications such as Geo Australasia and Outdoor Australia. Her radio play, Baddest Backpackers, was broadcast on Radio National. Lisa lives on the north coast of New South Wales, dividing her spare time between writing and surfing on her Malibu.