Brenda Walker studied at the University of New England and completed a doctorate on the work of Samuel Beckett at the Australian National University. From 1984, she taught at the University of Western Australia, where she was Winthrop professor of English and cultural studies.
As well as creative writing, her areas of research interest included gender studies, Australian literature and late modernism. Walker served as the reviews editor advisor for Westerly from 1989 to 1999. Her work has been published in numerous Australian and international journals.
She was the daughter of Shirley Walker and the sister of Don Walker.