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Lucy Van Smit
Represented By: Sallyanne Sweeney
Lucy van Smit is a novelist, non-fiction writer, speaker, television documentary maker and fine artist.
She worked worldwide for NBC News and Canadian Broadcasting, making author documentaries on Ian McEwan, John Le Carré, Martin Amis, and Nadine Gordimer.
Finally, Lucy listened to the small voice she’d heard since childhood, saying she was a writer. Her debut The Hurting won the inaugural Bath Children’s Novel Award and was published by Barry Cunningham, Chicken House Books, when she turned sixty.
Her non-fiction builds on her passion for creativity and the inner life of writers. A Writer’s Journal Workbook (Bloomsbury, 2022) became an instant word-of-mouth bestseller, helping thousands of authors overcome anxiety and writer’s block. Her forthcoming book The Creative Heart (Bloomsbury, 2026) is her most ambitious work: part-guided journal, part creative-nonfiction that takes its theme — Know Yourself — from the psychological to the soul level.
Drawing on thirty-five years of studying spirituality, Lucy shows why in an era of AI, there's never been a more vital time to be a writer—-to write with depth, courage, and conscience.
Lucy speaks regularly at festivals, including the London Screenwriter’s Festival, and runs popular workshops for writers seeking resilience, inspiration, and joy in their work.
Represented By: Sallyanne Sweeney
Lucy van Smit is a novelist, non-fiction writer, speaker, television documentary maker and fine artist.
She worked worldwide for NBC News and Canadian Broadcasting, making author documentaries on Ian McEwan, John Le Carré, Martin Amis, and Nadine Gordimer.
Finally, Lucy listened to the small voice she’d heard since childhood, saying she was a writer. Her debut The Hurting won the inaugural Bath Children’s Novel Award and was published by Barry Cunningham, Chicken House Books, when she turned sixty.
Her non-fiction builds on her passion for creativity and the inner life of writers. A Writer’s Journal Workbook (Bloomsbury, 2022) became an instant word-of-mouth bestseller, helping thousands of authors overcome anxiety and writer’s block. Her forthcoming book The Creative Heart (Bloomsbury, 2026) is her most ambitious work: part-guided journal, part creative-nonfiction that takes its theme — Know Yourself — from the psychological to the soul level.
Drawing on thirty-five years of studying spirituality, Lucy shows why in an era of AI, there's never been a more vital time to be a writer—-to write with depth, courage, and conscience.
Lucy speaks regularly at festivals, including the London Screenwriter’s Festival, and runs popular workshops for writers seeking resilience, inspiration, and joy in their work.
Published Works
Author: Lucy Van Smit
Genre: Genre Fiction
Nell's family arrives in Norway in financial disgrace. She is dominated by her family – her religious father and her sister, whose cancer stops Nell from embracing her dreams of a musical career.
She doesn't believe in love, either – until she falls for Lukas.
But Lukas has his own dark agenda, and in this tale of hidden secrets and shocking twists, he manipulates Nell closer to the point of no return. How far is she willing to go for love?
- No boy is worth your soul … in this epic noir thriller set in contemporary Norway, Nell is swept up in a dark and dangerous romance.
- Unforgettable, thrilling and atmospheric – there’s no place to hide in The Hurting’s midnight sun. You’ve never read anything like this!
- Lucy van Smit is a TV producer and The Hurting, her debut novel, was the winner of the Bath Children’s Novel Award.
“This taut thriller [is] completely believable. [Nell is] a compelling heroine from a writer to watch.”
- The Irish Times“Shocking twists and secrets aplenty in an intense, compelling epic noir thriller”
- The Bookseller“The grandeur of a Norwegian setting is not the only element that sets Lucy van Smit’s debut novel apart.”
- The Financial Times
Author: Lucy Van Smit
Genre: Non-Fiction, Self-Help
A writer will change and grow many times in their writing life.
This Journal Workbook aims to champion this journey. It answers those tricky questions writers long to ask, shares secret practices to inspire their writing confidence, and free their unique gifts from common obstacles and writing worries. In this Journal Workbook you will discover surprising new techniques from acting, neuroscience, psychology, philosophy, and spirituality to re-wild your creativity and empower your writing craft.
Writing can seem overwhelming. You long to be a writer, but where do you start?
And how do you bridge the gap between where you are right now and where you want to go?
How do you discover your voice? What does that even mean? And what can you do to improve your writing? Or discover what you want to write about?
This is not a book about getting published or finding an agent. This is a book about finding you. Finding your voice. Trusting your talent. Your creativity. It is about putting your heart and soul into your writing practice. Do the prompts and exercises. Reflect.
This Journal Workbook will help you find that spark. This is your writing life, write it your way.
“I found this book SO valuable - it allowed me to step back and really think about my writing practice. It works for someone just starting to write too, as it takes you through all the important basics. But I especially found it useful as a way to reflect on what I'm doing when I write. The exercises are super fun and low stress, really helpful if you're ever feeling stuck or blocked or scared.”
- Louie Stowell, bestselling author of LOKI
Author: Lucy Van Smit
Genre: Non-Fiction, Self Help
When you nurture your creative soul, everything else flourishes.
Ideas are wild things. They slip through our fingers unless we act. This inspiring workbook will help you capture your ideas into a creative practice—whether you want to write a book, craft a poem, reignite an abandoned novel, embrace a new creative path or reinvent yourself.
Blending practical exercises with positive psychology, The Creative Heart anchors creativity in every aspect of your life. Creativity is more than what you do—it’s how you live, breathe and feel.
Building on the success of A Writer's Journal Workbook, this new book goes deeper into what it means to know yourself as a creative soul and write with greater freedom, joy and playfulness.
Let the magic begin!