Scott's first published work was a 1984 volume of poetry "Flesh and Blood", followed by the play "Say Thank You to the Lady", for which she won the prestigious Bruce Mason Playwriting Award in 1986. In 1988, at the age of 40, Scott published her first novel, "Glory Days". It was shortlisted for the New Zealand Book Awards, and was published in New Zealand, Australia, Germany, UK and the US. Scott then published five more novels, a short story collection and a collection of essays.