Nean McKenzie is a children’s writer and optometrist who lives in western Melbourne with her husband and two teenage children. Originally from Bendigo, Nean lived in New Zealand, Europe and North East Africa before returning to Victoria. She lives with her family and a cat called Lemonade who purrs, even when nervous.

Nean’s first novel Cryptosight came out in 2019. She was awarded a Maurice Saxby mentorship for this story in 2017. Her second published book Xenoflight is a companion novel to Cryptosight, set in the same world but with different characters. Nean has a diploma in Professional Writing and Editing from RMIT and writes regular children’s book reviews for Buzzwords Books magazine.

When not writing or testing people’s eyes, Nean enjoys running and travelling to interesting places around the world. She also likes bush-walking and reading books, especially ones for 8-12 year-olds.