It was when he was a member of the Bristol Fiction Writers in university that he met Paul Leonard in 1994 (when Leonard was writing Venusian Lullaby) that he began to submit proposals to Virgin Publishing (with guidance and assistance from Leonard). Leonard also helped Walters deal with the subsequent rejection letters that he received. In 1997 Leonard convinced Virgin Publishing to commission a story from him (Dry Pilgrimage) that Leonard co-authored with him. Dry Pilgrimage was an idea that developed while Walters was working on Decalog 5: Wonders.