New York Times bestselling author and comic book writer Marjorie Liu ’00 will be the keynote speaker at Lawrence University’s 2026 commencement celebration on Sunday, June 14. Liu will also be awarded an honorary doctorate degree during the graduation ceremony.
Liu teaches comic book writing at MIT, sharing her more than 20 years of experience in publishing with her students. Writing for Marvel Comics, one of the world’s most influential comic book publishers, her titles have included the “Dark Wolverine” series, “NYX: No Way Home,” “X-23,” “Black Widow: The Name of the Rose,” “Han Solo,” which debuted at #6 on the New York Times Bestseller list, and “Astonishing X-Men,” which earned national attention and a GLAAD Award as the first Marvel comic featuring a same-sex marriage of X-Man Northstar. She also wrote the story for the animated film, “Avengers Confidential: Black Widow and Punisher,” produced by Marvel, Sony, and Madhouse, Inc.
An acclaimed novelist, Liu has authored the popular urban fantasy series Hunter Kiss, and the award-winning paranormal romance series, Dirk & Steele. Her novels have been USA Today bestsellers and have received the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award for “The Mortal Bone” (Hunter Kiss #6) and “Tiger Eye” (Dirk & Steele #1). “Tiger Eye” also was the basis for a bestselling paranormal romance video game called “Tiger Eye: Curse of the Riddle Box.”
Liu has amassed legions of fans for “Monstress,” an original horror fantasy series she co-created with artist Sana Takeda for Image Comics. Set in a richly imagined, matriarchal world inspired by Asian history and mythology, the critically acclaimed comic book series has received multiple Hugo Awards, British Fantasy Awards, the Harvey Award, and numerous Eisner Awards. As an Asian-American woman (her father is Taiwanese), she was proud to be the first woman – and woman of color – to earn an Eisner Award in the Best Writer category.
She is also the author of The Wingbearer Saga, a fantasy graphic novel series for middle-grade readers, about a young girl discovering her magical identity while protecting the world from sinister forces.
Liu earned a bachelor’s degree in East Asian Languages and Culture with a minor in biomedical ethics from Lawrence University in 2000. It was during her time at Lawrence that her interest in comic books began to flourish through weekly visits to Power House Comics on College Avenue. On campus, she dove into English literature courses with faculty mentors helping her hone her writing skills.
Liu earned her law degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2003, but soon found herself at a crossroads, debating whether to continue building her career as an attorney or diving deeper into her writing. The choice was soon settled when she wrote and sold her first paranormal romance novel, “Tiger Eye,” in 2004. Soon after, she embarked on a partnership with Marvel that has yielded a bounty of award-winning titles.
In a 2024 article for Lawrence magazine about her career, Liu described her years of publishing success as a complete surprise.
“When I was at Lawrence, if you'd told me that this is where I'd end up—writing for a living; specifically, comic books—I would have had a very difficult time imagining that future,” she said. “None of this was planned, or part of ‘the dream,’ but one opportunity naturally led to another, and suddenly 20 years passed by and here I am.”
Lawrence University’s 2026 Commencement exercises will be held on Sunday, June 14, at 10 a.m., on Main Hall Green. The ceremony is the culmination of a full weekend of events, including a concert featuring graduating seniors on Friday, June 12, at 7:30 p.m., in Lawrence Memorial Chapel, a multifaith baccalaureate service on Saturday, June 13, at 11 a.m., in Memorial Chapel, followed by a cookout for graduates and their families, faculty, and staff, at noon on Main Hall Green.
