Not Going to Plan, the “brilliant” (LoveReading) verse novel about sexual consent, unplanned pregnancy and the breaking of taboos by Carnegie Shadowers’ Award-winner Tia Fisher, has been longlisted for the 2026 Carnegie Medal for Writing.

Tia is part of an exclusive group here: the longlists were whittled down from an initial nomination list of 127 authors by the Carnegie Judging Panel.

Congratulations, Tia!

Read the full longlists here.

When Marnie’s rebellious streak gets her excluded from her exclusive school, she’s forced to take her GCSEs elsewhere, and sit next to Zed, a control-freak physics nerd with zero tolerance for mistakes—which is awkward because Marnie’s about to make the biggest blunder of her life.

Not Going to Plan is a taboo-busting novel about gender identity, consent and shame, which unflinchingly explores the heart-rending decisions a teenager must make as a result of a sexual encounter she didn’t fully consent to.

Not Going to Plan is out now. Order your copy here or, better, via your local bookstore and bookshop.org.

Follow Tia on Bluesky @tiafisher.bsky.social.