Lauren Morelli was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and grew up in Hurlock, Maryland where she graduated from North Dorchester High School. Early in her education, she studied dance at Marymount Manhattan College in New York, until a back injury ended her career in dance. After several years of mourning the loss of her dancing career, Morelli was inspired by a college professor to pursue a career in writing.
Lauren came out as gay in May 2014 in a self-penned essay titled "While Writing for 'Orange Is the New Black,' I Realized I Am Gay." In the essay she explained that during her writer's job at Orange Is the New Black (2013) her "life fell into a parallel rhythm with Piper's story in a way that went from interesting to terrifying in a matter of months." She states that she realized she was gay during one of the first days on the set of the show in fall 2012, but that it took her some time to realize and accept it.
She is engaged to actress and Orange Is the New Black cast member Samira Wiley.
