Ely College was honoured to welcome Tia Fisher, acclaimed author and winner of the Yoto Carnegie Shadowers’ Choice medal for 2024, for a special visit with Year 9 students.

The event, organised by Librarian Anne Shaw, was a highlight of the spring term and formed part of the College’s wider efforts to promote reading and creative writing across the curriculum.

Tia Fisher, whose award-winning young adult novel Crossing the Line has received national acclaim, spoke to students about her writing journey, the inspiration behind her work, and why she feels that connecting through creative writing is so important.

Crossing the Line is a novel in verse aimed at teenage readers, using concrete poetry to explore complex issues and emotions. It was inspired by the true story of Tia’s friend’s son who became involved with a drugs gang.

Celebrated as outstanding and important, the novel won the Yoto Carnegie Shadowers’ Choice 2024, the UKLA Award 11-14+ category 2024, was Children’s Book of the Week in The Times and is in the 2024 Reading for Empathy Collection.

Tia’s talk was followed by a lively Q&A session and a book signing. Selected students with a passion for creative writing were invited to a writing workshop after the event, where they explored writing concrete poetry of their own.

Principal, Simon Warburton, said: “It was a privilege to host Tia Fisher at Ely College. Her visit created a real buzz amongst our students and staff. We have a fabulous reading and writing culture here at Ely, and we’re passionate about providing positive memorable experiences for our students.

“Tia’s words and experiences brought the world of literature to life in a way that truly inspired our young people. A huge thanks to Mrs Shaw, Mrs Clark-Hope and the rest of our hard-working English department for organising such a fantastic opportunity and sharing their passion for creative writing with our students.”

For more information about Tia Fisher and her work, visit https://www.tiafisher.com.