tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-144879212022-12-08T19:59:28.859+01:00Ilona's WorldThe blog of writer and reviewer Ilona HegedusIlonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-81493794656461166112019-12-21T21:08:00.000+01:002019-12-21T21:08:55.668+01:00A New Poem in Coffee Poems anthology
Coffee Poems is an anthology containing poems about coffee. 
It includes one of my poems. (May 2019br The book contains poems by 139 poets. From 12 countries.) 
Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-5068947619209191852019-01-20T17:09:00.000+01:002019-01-20T17:09:25.633+01:002018 - Year In ReviewA short summary about writing and published works in 2018.
My poems appeared in three English-language anthologiesThe topics of these collections include empathy in art, the history of mankind, and the third anthology contains poems about the night sky.
I also had some poems, haikus in one local magazine and a short poem in a local anthology (in Hungarianbr />I also started blogging again, posted some book reviews, and I also made some author interviews. (We interviewed each other with some local women writersbr br />In 2019, I'd like to have more poems published, and I'd also like to work on some new short stories.Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-7972250535756553002018-12-18T12:40:00.000+01:002018-12-18T22:36:31.502+01:00A New Poem in Celestial Musings Poetry Anthology
Celestial Musings anthology includes one of my poems. This is a collection of poems about the beauty of the night sky. i>Celestial Musings: Poems Inspired by the Night Sky" December, 2018br />The proceeds from the book will benefit the Charles W. Brown Planetarium at Ball State University.Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-49357187254766860642018-10-20T20:16:00.000+02:002018-10-20T20:16:56.450+02:00A New Poem in 300K Poetry AnthologyOne of my poems appeared in 300K poetry anthologyb>
300K A Poetry Anthology about the Human Race' includes poems by French-speaking and English-speaking poets. These are all poems about the history of mankind. (Some are in French and some are in Englishbr br />Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-60788442905613172142018-08-11T22:00:00.002+02:002018-08-11T22:00:11.784+02:00New Poems in DoveTales Magazine
Two of my poems appeared in the latest issue of DoveTales This is an international journal of the arts.
Empathy in Art: Embracing the OtherYou can get a copy here.Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-3381693162739993722018-04-28T19:14:00.000+02:002018-04-28T19:14:15.664+02:00More Poems PublishedI started to write again last year. (Poems ans short stories.) Since then, I've had six poems published and there will be more.
Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-1945495406175184222018-01-27T14:06:00.006+01:002018-01-30T20:19:28.680+01:002017: Year in Review
7 short stories and 34 poemsIlonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-84062304822353204572017-12-28T14:04:00.000+01:002017-12-28T14:36:43.597+01:00A new poem in Wolf Warriors 4 anthologyOne of my poems appeared in a charity anthology, Wolf Warriors 4.: Wolves of Light and Darknessi> This is an English-language anthology containing poems and short stories about wolves.
The cover image is beautiful. (Purchase link
Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-4269143288978649022017-10-27T01:00:00.001+02:002017-10-27T01:00:49.740+02:00Some news about my writing- One of my poems will soon appear in a charity anthology. (It will be included in an English-language anthology containing poems and short stories about wolvesbrA short short story of mine was accepted and will appear in print, in Spanish, some time next year. (I submitted it in English, then it was translated into SpanishbrStay tuned. There will be more. br br />Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-77285392545695558442017-06-18T21:48:00.003+02:002017-06-18T21:51:23.826+02:00Writing againIlonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-22242432970552056642017-05-19T22:17:00.000+02:002017-05-19T22:17:30.849+02:00A Funny Children's Book About Cats - The Wild Cats of Piran: Chronicle One by Scott Alexander Young
The Wild Cats of Piran: Chronicle One is the first part of a series of children's books by Scott Alexander Young, who is also known as the creator of the TV series Max's Midnight MoviesThe book includes charming illustrations by Moreno Christe and it is about the adventures of a group of wild cats and their clever, beautiful, and somewhat mysterious leader, Queen Felicia. Her best friends, Dragan and Magyar, all have very different personalities and these cats are able to use magic on certain occasions. They live in a nice seaside town in Slovenia, which is a great place for them, except for when they meet some of their enemies, including local rats and certain local humans.
The book is also enjoyable for adults because of the story, the humour and because it is also beautifully written. Unfortunately, the story ends too early and the other parts in the series have not been published yet.
The Wild Cats of Piran is highly recommended for cat lovers everywhere.Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-6107549984605824932013-05-01T22:53:00.000+02:002013-05-01T22:53:01.705+02:00Extraterrestrial - A Story of Romance, Cheating and Alien Invasion
Extraterrestrial (Extraterrestre, 2011) is a funny Spanish sci-fi movie by Nacho Vigalondo, who also created one of the most original sci-fi movies of recent years, TimescrimesIn this story, a man and a woman, Julio and Julia, wake up after a one-night stand, just to find that the city has been evacuated because of an alien invasion. Luckily, the imminent danger is a good excuse for Julio to stay with the the beautiful girl a little longerThe situation becomes even more absurd with the arrival of the creepy neighbour, who also did not leave because he was hoping to be able to get closer to the pretty girl. Soon the woman's boyfriend also turns up, and continuously more and more lies are told in order to avoid suspicion.
The movie is not about the alien attack ifself, it just shows us a couple of people and their interactions as they get into more and more comic situations. 
The actors were chosen well. Michelle Jenner (Julia) and Julián Villagrán (Julio) were a perfect choice for the lead roles in this incredible and strange love story. 
This movie is not for those who want to see action scenes and a lot of CGI. However, Extraterrestrial is both original and funny, so it is highly recommendedb>
Trailer, Imdb, Wiki2012 was a good year for me in every respectsb> 
As for my writing, I became busy writing only towards the end of the year, but it felt great.
I had more poems published in English and I also wrote an urban fantasy story, and I managed to submit it to the publisher in time. This also means that I learnt to handle deadlinesI was also learning more about screenwriting and I would really like to learn more about it later.
In 2012, I also became brave enough to perform in front of people, so I was reading poetry at the Write Like Bukowski contest and I also did stand up for the first time, in a pub, at a charity event. The latter was a so-called open-mic event. (I'd like to do this again some timebr br />I also made lots of new friends and got a lot of new ideas that still need to be put on paper. 
The year 2012 was a better one for me than the ones before, and I was able to start the next one as an optimistIlonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-89714235952405643522012-12-21T08:47:00.000+01:002012-12-21T08:47:13.441+01:00A Good Sci-Fi Movie from Germany: Transfer (2010)
Transfer (2010) is an exciting, romantic and thought-provoking German sci-fi drama, directed by Damir LukacevicThe story reminds you of Freejack at the beginning, but it is different in many ways.
In this story, the mysterious Menzana Corporation offers the possibility for old rich people to transfer their personalities into the bodies of young and beautiful Africans who need the money to support their families and who accept that they can only use their own bodies for four hours each nightA German couple in their 70s, Anna and Hermann, have doubts about the procedure at first, but after 
Anna becomes terminally ill, they end up taking this path. The young Africans whose bodies they get,
Apolain and Sarah, both accept their fate at the beginning, but the first pregnancy gradually changes the situation and both couples want the baby for themselves. In addition to this, Anna starts to suffer from the feeling of guilt for ruining these young people's lives. The acting is great, and 
the movie is exceptionally well-written.
The film is based on a short story by Elia Barcelb>, and the screenplay is the work of Gabi Blauert and Damir Lukacevic.
According to the Wikipedia page in German, the movie won eight awards including the Best Science Fiction Feature Film Award in Shriekfest, in Los Angeles, several awards in Europe and one even in Tel Aviv.
Transfer is not for those of you who want to see an action movie with some sci-fi in it, but it is highly recommended for those who are interested in good, well-written, thought-provoking sci-fi. 
Links:
IMDB, trailer (English subtitlesa>
Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-50538539399719042372012-12-02T22:45:00.000+01:002012-12-04T00:07:01.765+01:00Creepy Stories by A Scary Southern Belle: TheDeath and Other Ghastly Ghost Stories by Debbie Kuhn
Title: TheDeath and Other Ghastly Ghost Stories
Author: Debbie Kuhn
Genre(s) / Subgenre(s): speculative fiction / dark fantasy, horror
Copyright: October 17, 2012
Formats: electronic: Kindle edition
Rating: 10
URL: at Amazon
Those who like good horror fiction should certainly become familiar with Debbie Kuhn's work, even though she writes in several genres. TheDeath is a collection which includes ten dark tales and it is definitely worth readingb>
Whether they are humans or ghosts, the main characters are all motivated by basic human fears and desires, and this makes it very easy for the reader to care about them. No matter how scary the story is, you will want to know what is going to happen to them. The ghosts are not always thevengeful ghosts of the typical B movies either. Some just want company, others warn you of imminent danger, and one simply just stays until she can finish her memoirs that she writes using other people's bodies. All of them are different and each story is a surprise, both refined and creepyb>
The stories are also set in different locationsb> A girl is alone in the mountains at night, performing a ritual that can bring back her lover from the dead. The ghost of an English girl is looking for her father during WW2 in London. A guy is driving too fast on dangerous roads in his new sports car to impress women which has tragic consequences. In a pub, a young manon the cursed chair of a famous gangster in order to win a bet. These are just a few. 
My favourite stories from the collection are LittleCasket and What Happened in the Cellar In both of these stories, the supernatural is at work, sometimes in frightening ways, but the real danger comes from our world.
The amazing cover art is by an English artist, Danielle TunstallThis book is highly recommended for those who would like to read some excellent horror storiesLinks: 
The author's websiteIlonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-72689583312339990792012-07-28T21:32:00.000+02:002012-07-28T21:32:01.611+02:00Look, What A Funny Lady - SeriouslyI'm Kidding By Ellen Degeneres Reviewed
Title: SeriouslyI'm Kidding
Author: Ellen Degeneres
Category: Humor
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (Hachette Book Group)
Copyright: June 2011
Formats: paperback, hardcover, electronic, audio
Rating: 7
SeriouslyI'm Kidding is the latest book by the much loved stand-up comedian and talk show host, Ellen Degeneresb> 
This book is a collection of random thoughts and ideas and it includes stories both from everyday life and from the life of a celebrity. There are a lot of really quotable lines in it about success, beauty, marriage, manners, politiness, and some even about gift-givingb>
The author also keeps giving advice to the readers on all these issues. It seems she has become both a great comedian and a fine motivational speakerb>
However, at places I felt that the text was far too simplistic for my liking. I suppose this is because the book was written for a talk show audience. English-learners might find this a great advantage.
This book is recommended for those who feel like reading something really funny (and for all those who need an easy-to-read book in English.) 
Links:
The publisher's website
Quotes from the book (at Goodreads)
Ellen in WikipediaIlonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-49841539141706507552012-07-25T22:50:00.000+02:002012-07-25T22:50:08.226+02:00When A Female Serial Killer Is Investigating The Afterlife: Slights by Kaaron Warren Reviewed
Title: Slights
Author: Kaaron Warren
Genre / Subgenre: Horror/ psychological
Publisher: Angry Robot
Copyright: July 1, 2009
Formats: paperback, electronic (Kindle Edition)
Rating: 9

Slights is a very strong debut novel by Australian writer, Kaaron Warren It is a creepy, highly distubing and excellent horror novel which was awarded the Ditmar Award and the Shadows Award for Best Fiction.
The main character, a young girl called Stevie, has a near-death experience, and when she comes back she remembers that she was in a dark room full of peopleb> Everyone she everoff was there and these people were torturing her. Later her main goal becomes finding out if this is really the place where everyone must go one day. The girl who had a troubled childhood gradually becomes obsessed with death, becomes suicidal, then starts toothers in order to find the answers. 
The book is a very well-written piece, it really manages to draw the reader in, but it is too gloomy, too depressing to be read too quickly. This is a psychological horror piece and the author uses a sort of strange diary format to let us follow the events of Stevie's life. While trying to find out more about death and what comes after death, Stevie is also investigating family history and gets into all sorts of conflicts in a seemigly peaceful suburban neighborhood. The latter turns out to be a place where people prefer not to notice the crimes that are committed, because this is much more comfortable for them than any of the alternatives. (Scary, isn't itbr br b>For those fans of psychological horror who can handle disturbing reads and shocking imagery, Slights is highly recommendedb>
Links: 
Official site (angryrobotbooks.coma>
The author's blog
Kaaron Warren in Wiki
Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-88081630821911403622012-07-12T07:49:00.000+02:002012-07-12T07:49:35.635+02:00A poem of mine appeared in Illumen magazine
The Best Planet in the World appeared in the Spring 2012 issue of the magazine. 
Illumen is a print magazine of speculative poetry, published biannually by Sam's Dot Publishing. It contains poetry, illustrations, articles and reviews.
The featured poet for this issue is Marge Simon and the cover art is by Joshua Gage. 
You can order a copy via the publisher's bookstoreIlonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-17627692062289621632012-04-22T13:48:00.001+02:002012-04-22T14:17:46.557+02:00Book Festival at MillenearisYesterday, I visited the International Book Festival at Millenearis in Budapest. The festival is big enough to be held in several huge buildings, and in the park in front of them. Nowadays, it is quite commonplace to say that 'people have given up on reading completely'. There might be times when you even start to believe this, but this is obviously an over-generalization.
I saw huge crowds at Millenearis wanting to buy books, and people who were queueing to get signatures from the authors who were presentb> So there is still hope. 

I also saw some ebook readers on sale and there were also a few publishers who started selling the electronic versions of some their books. This is a huge development here. I guess we will see much more of this later.
Not much of the contemporary genre writing gets published in Hungarian, but there are now also some big developments on this field, too. Even those who only read books in their mother-tongue can now buy some new and intriguing speculative fiction including The Quantum Thief, Deathless, Zoo City and The Wind-up Girl
I also spent some money on books (by S. Fry, M. Atwood, Henning Mankell and Wolf Haas), and I even bumped into some writer friends and acqaintances.Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-1075326108982394322012-03-17T22:41:00.000+01:002012-03-17T22:41:13.301+01:00When havingin public becomes a law - Blind Faith by Ben Elton Reviewed
Blind Faith (2007) is a dsytopian novel and it is also dealing with a great variety of issues that are of interest to todays readerb> The book was written by the brilliant comedy writer and stand up comedian, Ben Elton, who is also the author of The Thin Blue Line and Black Adder. 
In this didactic but very well-written book he is sharing his views with us on consumer society, trends in the media, in the world of community websites etc , while also telling a great story set in a near future England. Elton has always been a very good observer of the typical, the suprising, and the alaming and presented his observations in a funny and thought-provoking way. Blind Faith is definitly one of his most serious works.
In this book, he describes a world where it is compulsory to share all details of your life online, even the smallest and the most intimate details have to be shown on photos and videos. Citizens of this state live their lives in front of webcams and are obliged to show it to everyone that they haveoften enough, that they are religious enough, live exactly in the way that is expected from them and have no views of their own. The latter is illegal. Keeping a secret is a herecy and punishable by deathb> Theresults of climate change are thought to be the signs of Godsso disbelievers and those who try to keep and share the books and the knowledge of the old times are enemies of the state.
In Blind Faith, Elton is paying tribute to the greatest masters of dystopian fiction, gives us a disturbing account of the near future and he also makes the reader look at the present day lifestyles and societies in a different way It is worth readingb>
Links: Wikipedia, AmazonIlonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-10654846004778030862012-03-11T21:27:00.000+01:002012-03-11T21:35:12.579+01:00A poem of mine has appeared in Tales of The Talisman magazine
My poem, The Fairy's Granddaughter has appeared in the special fantasy issue of Tales of The Talisman magazine (Volume 7, Issue 3b>
I am very proud of this oneb> It is great to see something that I wrote in a magazine with such an awesome cover and which has contributors such as Carol Hightshoe, Simon Bleaken, F. T. McKinstry, Jim Chandler and David C. Kopaska-Merkel and is edited by David Lee Summersb>
You can get a copy of it at Amazon
Product details:
 Paperback: 100 pages
 Publisher: Hadrosaur Productions (January 31, 2012)
 Language: English
 ISBN-10: 1885093616, ISBN-13: 978-1885093615
 Price: $8.00Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-61300011819503206432012-02-06T10:19:00.000+01:002012-02-06T10:19:06.907+01:00A good book for urban fantasy lovers: Casting Shadows by J. Kelley Anderson 
Title: Casting Shadows
Author: J. Kelley Anderson
Genre(s) / Subgenre(s): Fantasy/ Urban Fantasy
Publisher: World Castle Publishing (January 31, 2012)
Formats: paperback (232 pages) or electronic (Kindle Edition)
Ive always liked stories that are a bit different from the averageb> Casting Shadows by J. Kelley Anderson is definitely a book that tells a story like thatb>
At the beginning, the main character Edward performs a magic ritual in a cemetery to summon an undead servant. He only does this because he is under a spell and a demon is trying to influence his deeds. However, the new servant, Vincent will not be the mercilessbeing that one could expect. He will be more like a friend, who always has Edwards best interests at heart, but he also has his own will and his own views about things. He does his best to protect him from himself and from theforces that are at work in the ususally quiet little town of Hurst, Ohio. A very powerful witch grandmother also appears, who tries to teach Edward how to become a warlock. He also encounters several types of magical beings and learns that he has to become the champion fighting for mankind and he really needs toup for the task very quickly. His only connection to normal life remains his best friend, Michael who is a local police officer and who, fortunately, has a sense of humor.


Casting Shadows is a real page-turner, the characters are well-drawn, likeable and more complex than the ususal fantasy clichés. The story is a unique mixture of what we have seen already and what we have not. There are also some great humorous scenes added. 
If you are interested in urban fantasy, do not miss this book. Its highly recommendedb>
Links: 
The author's website
AmazonIlonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-52163617745182412642012-01-22T22:00:00.000+01:002012-01-22T22:00:34.024+01:00Timecrimes: The movie about the guy who wanted to look atand ended up as a time-traveller
Timecrimes (Los cronocrímenes, 2007) is a quite original Spanish sci-fi movie by Nacho Vigalondob>
At the beginning of the movie, the main character Hector, who has just moved to the countryside with his wife, notices, via using his binoculars, a woman gettingsomewhere nearby. As soon as his wife leaves the house, he goes for a walk, looking for thebeauty. However, a man with bandages on his head attacks him and chases him through the woodsb> Hector takes refuge at a nearby science lab, and he unwillingly becomes the subject of a time-travel experimentb>

Apart from a few less logical scenes, this is quite an exciting movie, which has aquired international successb> There is going to be an American remake of Timecrimes, in all probability by David Cronenberg.
The multiple award winnning movie was written and directed by Nacho Vigalondo, whose latest sci-fi movie, Extraterrestrial (Extraterrestre, 2011), is about a couple witnessing an alien invasionb> I will surely watch that one, too.
Links:
Time crimes: Wiki, IMDB
Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-10415039812754210712012-01-21T13:04:00.000+01:002012-01-21T13:04:36.724+01:002011: Just What I Have Accomplished in 2011

In 2011:  - and got a lot of story ideas for later use.
Plans for 2012u> More writing and more reviewing. Improving my German. Hopefully, some travelling, too. There are going to be much more blog posts here about books, movies, etc. As for my writing, I have much more story ideas now, than ever before.Ilonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]:blogger.com,1999:blog-14487921.post-14057937631747116932011-12-04T21:22:00.001+01:002011-12-04T22:02:16.107+01:00Cinderella's Secret Diary by Ron Vitale
Title: Cinderella's Secret Diary (Book 1: Lost)
Author: Ron Vitale 
Genre(s) / Subgenre(s): speculative fiction / dark fantasy/ YA
Copyright: August, 2011
Formats: ebook (Kindle Edition), Paperback
The author's website
reviews at AmazonIlonahttpwww.blogger.com/profile/[email protected]