Asian American Author Marjorie Liu Becomes the First Woman To Win An Eisner Award For Best Writer
By Ryan General
Marjorie Liu recently became the first woman to win a Best Writer Eisner Award, the comic book industry’s top prize for writers.
Liu was given the award in recognition for her work on the critically-acclaimed epic fantasy comic series “Monstress.”
Set in a matriarchal world inspired by 1900s Asia, the ongoing story revolves around a teenage girl named Maika Halfwolf who shares a mysterious psychic link with a powerful monster.
Illustrated by Japanese artist Sana Takeda, “Monstress” is described by Liu as about a “young woman who belongs nowhere” and “young women who fight, who tame, who are consumed—and who become monsters in their own right.”
Since its publication in November 2015, the title has earned massive praise for its complex and varied characters and engaging narrative. It also immediately gained wide publicity as it explores racism, the effects of war, and feminism.
Liu also won the Best Continuing Series and Best Publication for Teens along with Takeda for “Monstress” during the 2018 Eisner awarding ceremony at Comic-Con International in San Diego.
Liu, who shared this year’s award with Batman writer Tom King, took to Twitter to express her shock at being the first woman in the award’s 30-year history to win the writing prize.
Born to a Taiwanese father and American mother, Liu began writing soon after graduating from law school in 2003.
Her previous novels include the notable “The Hunter Kiss” and “Tiger Eye” series, while her work for Marvel Comics includes “NYX,” “X-23,” “Dark Wolverine,” and “Astonishing X-Men.”
The third volume of “Monstress” will be available on September 5.
Feature iIage via Instagram/marjorie_liu
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