Stephen Orr was born in Adelaide in 1967, studied science and education and taught in a range of country and metropolitan schools. One of his early plays, Attempts to Draw Jesus, became his first novel, shortlisted for the Australian/Vogel's Literary Award. Since then he has published eleven novels (most recently, Shining Like the Sun) and two volumes of short stories (Datsunland and The Boy in Time). He has been nominated for awards such as the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, the Miles Franklin Award and the International Dublin Literary Award.