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It seemed like April, 2023 was all about wading through deep water, and trying not to drown.

Four days into the month my nephew, only a teenager, took his own life. Less than a week later my daughters' former step-father shot up his neighborhood, then died after a ten hour police standoff. In both cases all the usual afterward things happened, and there goes April.

But now it's May, and May may be better. We all hope so.

All things considered, the fact that I didn't get much writing stuff done in April is pretty small potatoes. It is related to my general well being, though, because when I'm feeling down one of the main ways I perk myself up is by writing. So April for me was not a roller-coaster, since they have their upswings, but more like the same kind of deep dive the beginning of winter can bring on in me.

I'm saying all this to apologize for not having any writing related news for you this time around. Emily and I had expected to have the republished Storm Chaser out by the end of the month, but she was hit just as hard by recent events as I was. Then she started back to work weekends at her seasonal saddle barn job, which is time consuming but very good for her emotional health, because--horses.

I stopped by to say hello to the horses, and one of them posed for photos. That and a walk in the woods helped, a little. The thing to do for stress is identify what helps fight it, and do that--something that's sometimes easier to say than do.

Of course, if the thing you do to fight stress is read a new book by me, I've failed you. But I'm hopping back on the horse (Not a real horse. Well, maybe): I've been working on editing and submitting, and Emily's getting ready to finish up the editing on Storm Chaser. I've also been presented with a couple of new writing opportunities that I'm checking into, so progress continues. Hopefully a month from now, when the next newsletter comes around and we're looking down the barrel of June, I'll have more news to report.

Assuming May goes okay. Considering how much I used to like April, that's a big assumption to make.

Remember, if all else fails: Happiness is a warm puppy.

Also, of course, some light reading sometimes helps:

http://markrhunter.com/
https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/"Mark R Hunter"