ABOUT HEATHER

A woman with short hair, glasses, and a small earring, wearing a red shirt and denim jacket, against a plain light background.

HEATHER'S STORY

Heather Smith is the author of books for young people, including Tig, a middle-grade novel which won the 2025 Governor General's Literary Award. Other notable books include: The Agony of Bun O'Keefe, which won the OLA White Pine Award and the Ruth & Sylvia Schwartz Children's Book Award; Ebb & Flow, which was shortlisted for the 2018 Governor General's Literary Award and won the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and the BMO Winterset Award; and The Phone Booth in Mr. Hirota’s Garden, which won the Freeman Book Award for Children's Literature.

The books in her body of work have either won or been shortlisted for virtually every Canadian children's literature prize, and been translated into eight languages.

Person sitting on a red Adirondack chair overlooking the ocean on a clear day.

Originally from Newfoundland, Heather now lives in Waterloo, Ontario, with her husband and family. Her east coast roots inspire much of her writing.

Heather spent much of her early life wrestling with words. Not only was she a reluctant reader, she struggled with speech as well.

Unable to pronounce certain words, she became a walking thesaurus, anxiously swapping out words
she wanted to say with words she could say.

Although Heather’s relationship with words was rocky, the two were able to get over their difficulties and have been on speaking terms ever since.

Today, Heather wrestles with words in a different way – as a writer! Instead of dodging them, she grabs them with both hands and finds them a home on the page.