The Carnegies
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MA Creative Writing graduate secures spot on The Carnegies shortlist
Tuesday, 8 April, 2025Bath Spa University MA Creative Writing graduate, Luke Palmer, has been shortlisted for the Yoto Carnegie Medal 2025.
Previously recognised for his work as a Branford Boase shortlisted novelist and poet, Luke has been shortlisted for this second novel, Play, which has attracted national regard for its thought-provoking exploration of manipulation, masculinity and male friendship.
A gripping YA novel about the fates of four very different boys, the book follows their journeys to manhood as they navigate friendships and growing up in a small town.
Reflecting on making the shortlist, Luke said:
“I was absolutely delighted. I’ve been an English teacher for almost twenty years, trying to get young people to fall in love with books. The Carnegies are like our Oscars.”
The Carnegies are the UK’s longest-running and best-loved children’s book awards, recognising outstanding reading experiences created through writing and illustration in books for children and young people.
Judged solely by librarians, the Awards have recognised a prominent rollcall of past winners, including C.S. Lewis, Terry Pratchett, Philip Pullman, Noel Streatfeild, Sally Gardner and Children’s Laureate, Quentin Blake.
Published in 2023, Luke began writing Play during the Coronavirus lockdown, using the fictional world as an escape from his new reality. He imagined a version of his own childhood, focusing on masculinity and male dynamics within society.
“I wanted to write about the kinds of myths that young men are taught and feed themselves. I’m interested in how those dynamics can be dangerous and leave young men susceptible to coercion and manipulation.”
Luke graduated with an MA in Creative Writing in 2017 and described the course as the catalyst that took writing from something he enjoyed to something he took seriously. Reflecting on his time at BSU, Luke said:
“The main thing that’s helped me is the ability to workshop a piece and take criticism on board; to find people who share your vision for the work and whose ideas you can trust. That certainly came from the MA.”
A full-time secondary school teacher, Luke chose to retain his position on a part-time basis when he started his MA and was first introduced to The Carnegies through their Shadowing Scheme – an international initiative designed to encourage reading for pleasure.
Each year, the Scheme engages thousands of children and young people to read the Award's shortlisted books, inviting them to vote for their favourites to win the Shadowers’ Choice Awards — announced alongside the Medal winners at the ceremony.
Now, with Play sitting proudly on The Carnegies shortlist, Luke’s journey has come full circle. Discussing his journey to becoming a published author, Luke said:
“I’ve always wanted to write. I finally decided to do something serious about it when I became a father for the first time. I wanted to be able to say to my children that I’d tried as hard as I could to reach my goals.”
Luke is the author of two novels, Grow and Play, as well as two collections of poems. His first book of poems, Spring in the Hospital, won the Prole Pamphlet contest in 2018 and he released his first full collection of poems, Homunculus, in 2024, which were highly commended in the Forward Prizes for Poetry.
The Carnegies Medal winners will be revealed on Thursday 19 June during a live-streamed ceremony at the Cambridge Theatre in London, hosted by Joseph Coelho, recipient of the 2024 Carnegie Medal for Writing. Each winner will be awarded a specially designed golden medal and a £5,000 Colin Mears Award cash prize.
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