Having won a scholarship to a leading girls' school in Papeete (Pape'ete), she became interested in works by French authors like Balzac, Flaubert, Zola and Maupassant.
The novels describe life in contemporary Tahiti from an inside perspective, through anecdotes and often with great humor.
Vaite thus brings attention on a region of the world that Western literature has relegated to travel guides or often described in exotic terms.
Frangipani, which has been published in 14 countries to date, was shortlisted for the 2005 NSW Premier's Literary Awards and longlisted for the 2006 Orange Prize.
Vaite was approached by New Zealand musician Tim Finn in 2018 to collaborate on his opera Ihitai 'Avei'a - Star Navigator about navigator and priest Tupaia who accompanied Cook on the Endeavour's maiden voyage, and she wrote monologues in Tahitian to accompany the songs, making Ihitai 'Avei'a the first opera to be performed in English and Tahitian.