Sequenda

A veil separates the worlds. And Pascal has just stepped through. Sequenda is the second book in the utopian trilogy New News from the West. Pascal follows his dog Timi2 through a mysterious curtain into a universe where the boundaries between reality and imagination blur, and every encounter reflects the infinite. And yet, hadn't the world been transformed? In We Save the World, guided by the principles of nonviolence, friendship, and music, Pascal and his companions had ended dualism and led humanity into the era of The Parousia. But other worlds obviously still existed. Or more precisely: other dimensions. Just as Dante had his Virgil, Pascal has his friend Joe, the man with the black hat and his rabbit Goldie. On their travels, they encounter a motley crew of inhabitants: real, literary, extraterrestrial, and brought to life animated characters. As he listens to their stories, Pascal begins to realize that his path was not chosen, but predetermined. And that behind every ending, a new beginning awaits. Initially shocked and reluctant, Joe reminds him: Hey Pascal, you were a hero before, and heroes don't just end up buying a house in the suburbs.

Some decisions are life-changing. 1970, at the age of nineteen, I came to Germany. I wanted to study but many fields were not open to me as I did not speak the language nor did I have the German Abitur. When I found I could study art on the Hamburg Art Academy I thought: Hmmm, maybe not my first choice but it would also have the advantage I would paint more than speak. And so, I ended up a fine arts artist. For many years I drew, painted and taught, eventually moving on to installation, performance and video. I also wrote, lectured and published but until 2015 these activities were more of a sideline. Then one morning in the fall of 2015 I woke up to a voice in my head: Write a novel... A novel? About what?... About the good stuff, about what guides you and gives you strength and makes life worth living. Like the stories of John Irving, the sagas of J.R.R.Tolkien. So I switched vocations in the middle of the stream. I still love the fine arts, but storytelling is even more me. Candace Carter, born in the USA in 1951, has lived and worked as a free-lance artist in Southern Germany for over 40 years. At age 64, she discovered storytelling as her true calling. Her thinking and writing are deeply influenced by Christianity and Marxism. Alongside her utopian trilogy New News from the West (We Save the World, Sequenda, and The Beyond - in preparation), she published the essay anthology Blütenlese (2024) and her journal series Evolving (starting 2025). Website Literature und Performance: candace-carter.wixsite.com/candacecarter Website Art: candace-carter.de YouTube channel: youtube.com/@candacecarter6732 Spotify Podcast: Kunst oder Grombiere (Art or Potatoes)