There’s not many people who don’t feel an affinity to the dusty mining town of Lightning Ridge when they visit, but author Fiona McArthur decided to go the extra mile to solidify her affection. 

In her new novel - which she recently launched in Lightning Ridge - Fiona set the scene for a romance against the familiar streets of the town.

“I was just trawling realestate.com when I saw this little camp that was self sufficient on the Ridge…I just created this little fantasy in my mind and strangely, my husband didn’t want to move there. So I had to create a story around it,” Fiona said of the town she wrote about, despite living almost 10 hours away. 

With that in mind, she visited the town with a scene to set, meeting locals along the way. 



“Originally I wasn’t going to call it that, but once you get to the town you can’t call it anything except Lightning Ridge, which is just unique and amazing. It’s full of characters and larrikins and just a fun place to be,” Fiona said.

What’s known to locals as Buskers Cottage was converted in the book to a medical centre featured heavily in the novel. 

With a storyline centred around doctors in the bush, Fiona was hopeful that a romanticised version of the country could spark some inspiration for people looking for a tree change. 

“I think that if people will look and see how much rural and remote health workers give, but then how rewarding it could be, maybe some doctor somewhere will read it and say ‘hey, I’d like to give that a go’,” she said. 

The recent book launch was held at the local visitor information centre, with enough excited locals gathering to sell out the signed copies of the book ‘The Opal Miner’s Daughter’.

“It was just fabulous…we had the best time,” Fiona said. 

Lightning Ridge Visitor Information Centre manager Di Kearl said the location’s first ever book launch was packed. 

“(I’m) very happy with the response from both visitors and locals alike, it was a great success, and we look forward to having Fiona back in 2025 for her next book,” Ms Kearl said. 

With the town still on her mind, Fiona is eager for her return trip. 

“I think every Australian should go there at least once and decide whether they’re going to fall in love with it,” Fiona said.