Toltz attended Killara High School and graduated from the University of Newcastle, New South Wales, in 1994. Prior to his literary career, he lived in Montreal, Vancouver, New York City, Barcelona, and Paris, variously working as a cameraman, telemarketer, security guard, private investigator, English teacher, and screenwriter.
Toltz married French-Australian artist and painter Marie Peter-Toltz in 2005. They have one son born in 2012.
