Welcome to the Autumn 2025 issue of Folyosó, which features the winners of the 2025 international contest, a featured interview, cover art by Márk Kovács, and more!
The international contest had two separate themes. The first theme drew on a quote from Book I of Virgil’s Aeneid, in which Aeneas tells his men, “forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit” (“perhaps one day it will please [us] to remember these things”). Contestants were to write a story, poem, dialogue, essay, or other piece that showed a change in perspective. For the second theme, contestants were to write a piece (in any genre) introducing something they had found especially interesting in a school subject. The jury—Diana Senechal, Judit Kassainé Mrena, and Anikó Bánhegyesi— selected the winners after careful deliberation. All of the contest entries (winners and non-winners alike) appear in this issue.
In addition to honoring the winners, we would like to recognize all those who have entered our international contest year after year: in particular Luca Türk of the Árpád Vezér Gimnázium in Sárospatak, who has entered the contest for three consecutive years and won first place in 2023 for her story “My Diary.”
The interview (the second in an occasional series) is with Zaránd Lánczi, an eleventh-grade Varga student who, with his partner Kevin Budai, won first place in the junior men’s category of the 2025 ICF Kayak-Canoe Maraton World Championship in Győr.
In addition, this issue of Folyosó features a section of letters to characters of The Great Gatsby.
We wish you enjoyable reading!
Interview with Zaránd Lánczi, Varga Student and Kayak World Champion
International Contest: Theme 1
- First place: Derin Güntekin (Lycée Sainte Pulchérie, Istanbul), “The Scent of the Island” and Dominik Nemcsok (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Never Fall”
- Second place: Szonja Lengyel (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “The Sculpture” and Viktória Botka (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Nostalgia. A Yearning for the Past…”
- Third place: Aslı Palaska (Lycée Sainte Pulchérie, Istanbul), “Bellow”
- Honorable mention: Ela İrem Uçarlar (Lycée Sainte Pulchérie, Istanbul), “The Girl with the Violin” and Dániel Szutorisz-Pető (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Why?“
International Contest: Theme 2
- First place: Dafne Çavga (Lycée Sainte Pulchérie, Istanbul), “The Art of Movement“
- Second place: Áron Kaposvári (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Under the Spell of Spiders“
- Third place: Zalán Kaposvári (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “The Eruption of the Revolution“
- Honorable mention: Márk Gál (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Circularity in History“; Zsombor Górán (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Expansion“; and Márk Kovács (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Portrayal“
Letters to a Character from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby
- Szonja Lengyel (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Letter from Szonja Lengyel to Nick Carraway“
- Márk Gál (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Letter from Meyer to Jay“
- Eszter Forvith (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Letter from F. E. to Mr. Gatsby“
- Fanni Farkas (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Letter from Nick to Daisy“
- Áron Kaposvári (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Letter from Áron to Gatsby“
- Zalán Kaposvári (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Letter from Zalán to Daisy“
- Balázs Kalcsó (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Letter from Balázs to Nick“
Stories
- Luca Türk (Árpád Vezér Gimnázium, Sárospatak), “Perhaps One Day It Will Please Us to Remember These Things“
- Ece Pösteki (Lycée Sainte Pulchérie, Istanbul), “Between Hallways“
- Leyla Doruk Gençer (Lycée Sainte Pulchérie, Istanbul), “Cogito Ergo Doleo“
- Eszter Forvith (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “From Minus to Plus“
- Miranda Fényes (Árpád Vezér Gimnázium, Sárospatak), “Peace and Joy“
- Fanni Farkas (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “This Is How Yesterday Went“
- Jázmin Juhász (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “School Talent Show“
- Yağmur Özdeğirmenci (Lycée Sainte Pulchérie, Istanbul), “The Argument“
Essays
- Zeynep Koçoğlu (Lycée Sainte Pulchérie, Istanbul), “Chemical Reactions“
- Laura Pirók (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “P. E. Class“
- Sára Kovács (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “A Passage to Eternity“
- Sára Timár (Varga Katalin Gimnázium, Szolnok), “Timeline“
Submit to the Spring 2026 issue of Folyosó! (General submissions are welcome at any time; for the spring issue, they will be considered until April 15, 2026.)
Cover art by Márk Kovács.