From 2020 to 2024, she was senior vice president at Knopf Doubleday, and from 2016 to 2020 she was executive director of the National Book Foundation.

[7] Lucas began her career as a 15-year-old intern at Vibe magazine; at 17 she worked for radio station KIIS-FM.

"[11] The Los Angeles Times said Lucas "is clearly poised to bring the organization to a new level...ideally suited" to promote the foundation.

She is the third director in the history of the foundation, "one of America’s key literary institutions,"[12] and the first woman and the first African-American to lead the organization.

[13] As executive director, she has publicly discussed the importance of inclusivity in publishing and reaching young readers.