Valerie Spencer is a fictional character from General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network, portrayed by Brytni Sarpy. Introduced as the niece of the legendary Luke Spencer (Anthony Geary), Valerie is the daughter of the late Pat Spencer (Dee Wallace). Upon losing her mother, Valerie relocates to Port Charles and moves in with her cousin, Lulu Spencer (Emme Rylan), and bonds with her husband Dante Falconeri (Dominic Zamprogna). The two end up having a one-night stand, only for Dante to reconcile with Lulu and Valerie briefly dates Lulu's ex-boyfriend Dillon Quartermaine (Robert Palmer Watkins).

"That's my favorite part of being Valerie, that Spencer is at the end of her name. I'm so honored to be a part of a legacy family. It's incredibly humbling."

Brytni Sarpy originated the role of Valerie Spencer on March 20, 2015. Sarpy had auditioned for the series several times over the years. The actress first auditioned for the short lived role of Taylor DuBois in the spring of 2013. While Sarpy made it through the casting process, she was ultimately too old for the role of the 16-year-old Taylor. In late 2013, Sarpy auditioned for the role of Jordan Ashford—for which she was too young because Sarpy would have been playing mom to a teenager. However, Sarpy made an indelible impression on the casting department. Sarpy was sure she'd land in daytime because she had actually auditioned several times for NBC's Days of Our Lives. "I kind of knew it was going to be one or the other" the actress said to Soap Opera Digest. In January 2015 the series put out a casting call for a "beautiful," "dynamic", and "charismatic" African American actress in her 20s for a contract role due begin taping in late February. When Sarpy returned to audition for the role of Valerie with casting director Mark Teschner despite the lack of information in the original casting call. Sarpy described the casting process for Valerie as "pretty quick" because within the next few days, she had a callback with some of the producers, including executive producer Frank Valentini. She then screen tested the following Monday and within "a week and a half," Sarpy had booked the role making General Hospital the actress's first major professional gig. Sarpy admitted that finding the "right" roles had been difficult, "but the role of Valerie Spencer, was effortless for me." Head writer Ron Carlivati explained that with the introduction of Valerie's mother Pat (Dee Wallace) as the long lost Spencer sibling, the writers questioned if a new character of that age could "have an ongoing purpose on the canvas?" And out of those discussions came the character of Valerie. Carlivati thought, "why go to all that trouble just to kill of Pat?" Valerie's survival after Pat's departure "made it more interesting to [the writers] and brought it into the present."

In December 2016, Sarpy was downgraded to recurring basis. In February 2019, it was announced that Sarpy had joined the cast of The Young and the Restless. On March 28, 2019, it was announced that Paulina Bugembe had been cast in the role of Valerie, and had already had her first day on-set; she made her first appearance on April 23, 2019. Bugembe made her final appearance on September 1 of the following year.

Sarpy explained that Valerie would "always" be defined by her relationship with her mother. While it wasn't originally scripted, Valerie's introduction immediately answers the question about her being biracial. Sarpy said "We felt it was important to answer the question of Valerie's mixed ethnicity head on." During an interview with Soap Opera Digest, Sarpy revealed that she and Valerie actually have several similarities. Like Valerie, Sarpy also has a diverse ethnic background and was primarily raised by a single parent—her father, while Valerie was raised by her mother. Valerie is her mother's caretaker during her battle with Multiple sclerosis while Sarpy's father Mel has Parkinson's disease. "The way Valerie took care of her mother, I definitely related to it." Because of this, Valerie possess a certain "maternal quality." Sarpy said her character's iconic heritage speaks for itself. "Valerie is a Spencer through and through." She described Valerie as a "passionate" "go-getter" who "wears her heart on her sleeve." Valerie has "hero qualities" and is a "good girl." Valerie is a "fighter" Sarpy declared. She is very "sincere." Sarpy further described Valerie as being "strong" and "courageous." Sarpy also characterized Valerie as being very "conscientious." "She's a moral character so she cares about what she's doing." Though she loves her mom, Valerie didn't have much time to live her own life because she was devoted to Pat.

The character's introduction is far from a gradual one but said the character brings a "new energy to the Spencer clan." Legendary anti-hero Luke Spencer (Anthony Geary) has suffered a severe breakdown which his family has linked to his childhood which he never discusses. The Spencer family goes seeking out Luke's estranged older sister Pat Spencer—and instead find her daughter, Valerie—who is immediately thrust into the middle of the drama. Upon her introduction, Valerie struggles to find her place in Port Charles and in her family because it is all so unfamiliar to her and she doesn't have Pat by her side. Still suffering through the trauma of losing her mother, Valerie struggles to find her place in town and in the ranks of her iconic family because it is all so unfamiliar to her. "She's come in with quite a lot on her plate" Sarpy said. However, the circumstances of her introduction makes for a lot of "raw emotion and character development" Sarpy explained.

After losing her mother, Valerie develops an immediate connection with Dante Falconeri (Zamprogna), who is married to her cousin Lulu (Rylan). Sarpy said that Dante and Valerie's relationship is "very nurturing" and he stands up for her in way that no one else does. They also share a kindred spirit because of them were raised by single mothers. Dante has a "soft spot" for her and Valerie needs really needs that when they first meet. Sarpy insisted that Valerie's intentions were pure. The series immediately hinted at the possibility of Dante and Valerie's relationship causing trouble for Dante and Lulu. The two eventually have a one-night stand and Sarpy said it "adds layers to her character" and makes for great drama. However, Dante and Valerie's relationship isn't "over sexualized" and they never intended to hurt anyone. Sarpy admitted that she saw the story coming because she auditioned opposite Dominic Zamprogna in the chemistry read. The actress explained that she was a bit "apprehensive" about Valerie's relationship with Dante which made her take it more seriously. "I think we made it very believable" Sarpy said. "This is all new terrain for her." Because Valerie's life has been about her mother, "she's green to a lot of things" and she is bound to "make some mistakes" as she tries to develop new relationships. Sarpy credited Zamprogna with making her feel comfortable during the usually awkward filming process for the love scenes. In 2016, Sarpy admitted that Dante and Lulu's loft, where Valerie and Dante's affair occurred is her least favorite set to work on considering the history between the characters. "Ugh, just the idea of Valerie being Lulu's cousin makes it awkward!"

Looking for answers about Luke Spencer (Anthony Geary)'s mental state, his daughter Lulu (Emme Rylan) and his ex-wife Tracy Quartermaine (Jane Elliot) go searching for his estranged older sister Pat, and find her daughter Valerie instead. As she is held hostage by a gun wielding Luke, Valerie tells them Pat is dead. Luke ties Valerie up and threatens to kill her when he finds out she lied about her mother being dead. They struggle over his gun and Luke escapes leaving Valerie unconscious and she is discovered by Lulu and her husband Dante Falconeri (Dominic Zamprogna). Valerie reveals that Pat is alive and living in a nursing home because she has Multiple sclerosis and Luke has gone after her. Dante and Valerie find Pat (Dee Wallace) at her childhood home in Port Charles with the rest of the Spencers only for their reunion to be cut short when Pat suddenly passes away. Blaming Luke for her mother's death, Valerie tries to kill him, but Dante talks her down.