Smith, Ali (1962– )

Scottish writer. Known for her quirky, original style, with candid emotional portrayals and mysterious overtones, she achieved wide success with her second novel, Hotel World (2001), which follows the actions of five characters, including the ghost of a chambermaid killed in an accident, during the course of one night. Her novel The Accidental (2004), a tale of the influences of a mysterious and manipulative stranger taken into an unhappy family in Norfolk, won the 2005 Whitbread Award.

Smith's first novel, Like, the story of a long-enduring friendship set in Scotland and Cambridge, England, was published in 1997. Hotel World won several Scottish book awards, including the inaugural Scottish Arts Council Book of the Year Award. Smith's short-story collections include Free Love and Other Stories (1995), Other Stories and Other Stories (1999), and The Whole Story and Other Stories (2003). Hotel World and The Accidental were shortlisted for both the Booker and Orange Prizes for fiction.

Smith was born in Inverness and worked as a lecturer at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow. She is a contributor to a variety of publications, including The Scotsman and the Times Literary Supplement.