Eight young creators, who have already published at least one of their writings and are currently working on their fresh manuscripts, gathered on Thursday afternoon at the Páhok Kapo(l)cs Creative House in Alsópáhok, Zala County, Hunggary. Réka Borda, one of the current ambassadors of Panodyssey alongside with Noé Tibor Kiss, introduced the authors shortlisted for the Mastercard® Companion Literary Fellowship 2023 to the Panodyssey platform, which promises both writers and readers a professional community and potential translators.
"I write while I'm writing", admitted Balázs Mohácsi, one of this year's shortlisted winners of the Mastercard® Fellow Writer's Scholarship. This is what happens when one- or two-volume authors, already established in the literary world, open up about their dilemmas and writing blocks in the manuscript they are working on.

But what happens when their manuscripts deflect, when deadlines are not their muse, and what can the Panodyssey website offer them? First of all, Réka Borda explained to the authors that they needed a professional community of readers with important feedback and long-term insights, which is exactly what the Panodyssey website provides. It was last year when Réka Borda discovered the Panodyssey website, which she considers to be a platform similar to Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn but specifically for authors. It was the time when Péter Závada and Anita Moskát were the Panodyssey ambassadors in Hungary. She was grateful for the opportunity to take over the baton from them in 2023, alongside Noé Tibor Kiss, which also means that they will publish essays on the Könyves Magazin platform from time to time. Réka was interested in this form, and since her research topic as a doctoral student was also related to the culture of the subject, she felt that this was a great opportunity to express her thoughts on the subject in a different tone from scientific language, in a more readable way, within the framework of expository prose.

After Réka Borda's introduction, many questions were asked by the participants in the writing workshop camp in Alsópáhok. Ethical issues were raised, as was the question of what the slippery slopes are for a poem, short story, or novel. Moreover, the authors exchanged their experiences on the methods of solving their writer's blocks. They agreed that it would be useful to test themselves on the Panondyssey platform because that way they could presumably reach a different readership than the journal-centric literary field, and there was no argument among those present that if they enjoy their own writing six months after finishing it, they should be satisfied with it. Panodyssey is also an opportunity to discuss coping strategies specific to different genres. And, as Réka Borda pointed out, it is also exciting to spend time on the platform because she can discover the writing world of new and emerging talents. Moreover, for authors who already have a book out and are showing off their lion's claws, Panodyssey can also help them find potential translators on the site.

Disclaimer: The above article is the English translation of the original Hungarian article published on Könyves Magazin.

Photo taken by Gábor Valuska.