Ngozi Ukazu

Ngozi Ukazu
Ukazu at the 2024 Texas Book Festival.
NationalityAmerican
AreaCartoonist, Writer
Notable works
Check, Please!
Awards"Digital Book of the Year" Harvey Award (2019)
"Outstanding Comic" Ignatz Award (2019)
http://www.ngoziu.com

Ngozi Ukazu Listenⓘ is an American cartoonist and graphic novelist. In 2013, she created the webcomic Check, Please!, which later became a New York Times-bestselling graphic novel.

Early life

Ngozi Ukazu grew up in Houston, Texas.[1][2] She attended Bellaire High School, where she contributed to the school’s newspaper, The Three Penny Press, as the comics editor. She is the daughter of Nigerian parents.[2] She studied computer science, obtaining a degree in Computing and The Arts from Yale University in 2013[3] and earned a masters degree in Sequential Art from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2015.[4]

Career

Ukazu launched Check, Please! as a webcomic in 2013 after writing a screenplay about Eric "Bitty" Bittle, a gay college freshman and champion figure skater who joins a hockey team.[5][6]

Ukazu created a Kickstarter campaign in 2015 to print the first volume of the comic; the campaign resulted in the highest-funded comics project in Kickstarter's history.[7] In 2018, the first installment, Check, Please!: #Hockey, was published by First Second Books.[1] The sequel, Check, Please!: Sticks & Scones, was a New York Times bestseller in May 2020.[8]

In December 2025, Ukazu announced that a new volume of Check, Please! would be released in 2026.[9] She also revealed that the series has been optioned for TV adaptation.[10][11]

For DC Comics, she wrote and illustrated the young adult graphic novel Barda, based on the character Big Barda.[12] The sequel, Orion, which follows the character of the same name, is slated to be published in 2026.[13]

Her latest graphic novel, Flip, was published in September 2025.[14]

Publications

  • 2018: Check, Please!: #Hockey
  • 2020: Check, Please!: Sticks & Scones
  • 2024: Bunt: Striking Out on Financial Aid (with Mad Rupert)
  • 2024: Barda
  • 2025: Flip
  • (Upcoming) 2026: Orion

Awards and honors

References

  1. 1 2 Brenner, Wayne Alan (2018-09-05). "Ngozi Ukazu Hip-Checks This Year's Staple! Expo". Austin Chronicle. Archived from the original on 2020-05-24. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  2. 1 2 Hagerty, Michael (2018-11-01). "Check, Please! How a Web Comic About Hockey and Baking Went Viral". Houston Public Media. Archived from the original on 2020-06-14. Retrieved 2020-05-14.
  3. ↑ "Check, Please!". Tumblr. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
  4. ↑ "Ngozi Ukazu". Ngozi Ukazu. Archived from the original on 2020-06-01. Retrieved 2020-05-14.
  5. ↑ Romano, Aja (2016-06-29). "Why queer hockey webcomic Check, Please! is stealing the internet's heart". Vox. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  6. ↑ Lehoczky, Etelka (30 September 2018). "Life, Love and Hockey (Oooh, And Pie) In 'Check, Please!'". NPR.org. Retrieved 2020-05-24.
  7. ↑ "Get a first look at the conclusion to Ngozi Ukazu's 'Check, Please' books". EW.com. Archived from the original on 2019-10-31. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  8. ↑ "Graphic Books and Manga - Best Sellers - The New York Times". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2019-11-06. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  9. ↑ MacDonald, Heidi (2026-01-12). "Want more gay hockey romance? Check, Please! returns in 2026". The Beat. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
  10. ↑ "Move over Heated Rivalry, the internet's favorite hockey BL webcomic Check Please! is in development as a TV series". Popverse. 2026-03-08. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
  11. ↑ Wickman, Kase (2025-12-23). "'Heated Rivalry' and the Big Business of Hockey Romance Novels". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
  12. ↑ "FCBD Announcement". Archived from the original on 2024-05-16. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  13. ↑ Comments, Rich Johnston | (2025-05-16). "Ngozi Ukazu On Her Barda Graphic Novel Sequel, Orion". bleedingcool.com. Retrieved 2026-04-03.
  14. ↑ Maughan, Shannon (6 February 2025). "Fall 2025 Children's Sneak Previews". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 17 April 2025.
  15. ↑ Staff, Beat (2026-07-08). "Finalists announced for 11th Annual DWAYNE McDUFFIE AWARD FOR DIVERSITY IN COMICS". The Beat. Retrieved 2026-07-24.
  16. ↑ "Harvey Awards Unveil 2026 Nominees". www.harveyawards.com. Retrieved 2026-07-24.
  17. ↑ Staff, Beat (2019-10-09). "Syndicated Comics". The Beat. Archived from the original on 2020-04-14. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  18. ↑ "And the Winners of the 2019 HARVEY AWARDS are..." Newsarama. Archived from the original on 2020-01-02. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  19. ↑ Globe, The Boston. "Best 2018 books for children". BostonGlobe.com. Archived from the original on 2020-05-14. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  20. ↑ "Best Young Adult Books of 2018 From Kirkus Reviews – Children's Book Council". 3 December 2018. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  21. ↑ "The New York Public Library Unveils Its Best Books of 2018 for Kids, Teens, and Adults". The New York Public Library. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  22. ↑ "Best Reason to Care About Hockey (Besides the Texas Stars): Ngozi Ukazu". www.austinchronicle.com. Archived from the original on 2020-05-24. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  23. ↑ "The Harvey Awards Reveal Nominees for 2018 - The Harvey Awards". www.harveyawards.com. 2018-08-09. Archived from the original on 2020-06-14. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  24. ↑ "71st Annual Reuben Award Winners Announced!". Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  25. ↑ Weldon, Glen; Mayer, Petra (12 July 2017). "Let's Get Graphic: 100 Favorite Comics And Graphic Novels". NPR.org. Archived from the original on 2021-02-13. Retrieved 2020-05-25.

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