LJ Smith, author of the bestselling series The Vampire Diaries, has died aged just 66. Her death, which occurred on March 8th, died in hospital in Danville, California, her family has confirmed. Smith was being treated for a rare autoimmune disease at the time. She was best known for writing the series of vampire books that went on to birth a hit TV series starring Nina Dobrev, Paul Wesley and Ian Somerhalder.

She also penned the Night World series, and had completed three more – still unpublished – books before she died. Her books made the New York Times Best Seller list and have been nominated for five awards over the years. The Vampire Diaries wasn’t the only series of Smith’s that was adapted for screen – her six-part series The Secret Circle was also adapted for The CW in 2011, but was cancelled a year later.

Smith started out her career as a teacher at a US elementary school but quit after three years to pursue a writing career in 1989. Her final books in both The Vampire Diaries and Secret Circle series were done by ghostwriters after Smith’s involvement was terminated by the publisher.

Smith was suffering from the disease that killed her for more than a decade, and in 2015 almost lost her life from an undiagnosed granulomatosis with polyangiitis. At the time, she was hospitalised for two months, placed on a ventilator and suffering severe damage to her kidneys, heart, liver and gallbladder.

Now she is survived by her "devoted long-time friend" Julie Divola, her younger sister Judy Clifford, and her niece and nephew Lauren and Brian.

A tribute posted to her official website read: "Lisa was a kind and gentle soul, whose brilliance, creativity, resilience and empathy, illuminated the lives of her family, friends and fans alike. She will be remembered for her imaginative spirit, her pioneering role in supernatural fiction, and her generosity, warmth and heart, both on and off the page."

Fans have been paying their own tributes online, with one posting: "Eternal thanks to the woman who gave us Elena, Stefan, Damon, Katherine, Bonnie and so many other incredible characters. RIP."

Another echoed: "She played such a huge part in my childhood. The Vampire Diaries, The Forbidden Games, Dark Visions, the secret circle, and the night World Series were so important to me. She’s so underrated and she was so ahead of her time. RIP LJ Smith."

And a third said: "May she rest in peace. Such sad news but grateful for her contributions to literature and the arts."