Lake on the Moon by H.E. Wilburson

10/26/2019

The War of the Worlds (The Martian Diaries, Vol. 2) Audio Drama Sequel: A New Martian Menace Invades Earth
Narrated by Terry Thompson and Harry Preston

Multiple-volume, science-fiction author, H.E. Wilburson, introduces us to the second audio book of three in his sci-fi series, Lake on the Moon: The Martian Diaries:
When a Martian cylinder lands on Horsell Common, Ogilvy the astronomer barely survives a deadly heat-ray attack and wakes up in a hospital inundated with casualties as the first War of the Worlds alien invasion rages. He alone discovers the real significance of the Red Weed brought to Earth by the Martians and dispatches vital evidence on board HMS Thunder Child, but it is lost when the ship is attacked and sunk by Martian tripods. Years later in 1919, in the aftermath of the Great War and Spanish Influenza, an insidious new alien menace emerges on Earth from the long forgotten Red Weed. A dangerous and daring plan is devised as Ogilvy, George (HG Wells' narrator), and other original characters strive to combat the devastating Martian plague threatening to extinguish all life on our planet.
Don't miss this compelling continuation of H.G. Wells' iconic book in the exciting second volume of The Martian Diaries science fiction series, featuring the original characters and a bespoke musical score.

I have been waiting to resume the story from “The Day of the Martians” for a long time. I loved the first audio book!
This is so well written and acted out! The voice actors do a very credible job and the sound effects along with the music really make the story come alive. Science fiction is my favorite genre, and both of these books are a wonderful extension of the classic story from H. G. Wells “The War of The Worlds”.
I give “Lake on the Moon” a score of 5 stars!

You can buy this book on the platform of your choice:
mybook.to/themartiandiaries

You can follow the author:
books.martiandiaries.com

Here is the link for my review of the first book: www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/the-day-of-the-martians-the-martian-diaries-volume-1-by-he-wilburson-narrated-by-terry-thompson-and-harry-preston

Here is the link for my review of the third volume in the series:
www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/the-martian-diaries-vol-3-gateway-to-mars

Tags: sci-fi, science fiction, historical, aliens, Mars, invasion, England, Wales

Copyright © 2019 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction

14 Comments

Wilburson

10/29/2019 12:03:04 pm

Hi Mark, thanks for your generous review, it is very much appreciated! I am so glad you enjoyed volume 2, Lake On The Moon. I hope that volume 3, Gateway to Mars will be as entertaining, it is certainly keeping me up until the early hours at the moment!

Mark

10/29/2019 02:14:50 pm

Grizz really enjoyed the audio book also. I don't read the stories to him.
First questions.
Are you a full-time or part-time writer?
What inspired you to tackle this project, a sequel to the classic "The War of the Worlds"?

wilburson

10/30/2019 03:34:04 am

I have no choice but to be a full time writer and composer too, or the Martian Diaries would never see the light of day. Unfortunately, that means most things are put on the back burner. I have no time, except for basic maintenance around the house. I have noticed there are fewer birds, butterflies and hardly any bees since I stopped doing the garden!

I really like The War Of The Worlds, and hopefully, I have resolved some questions I felt, were left unanswered by H.G.Wells, Perhaps Grizz will be excited to hear that volume 3. Gateway To Mars, has been extended to include volume 4! Yes, The Martian Diaries in its entirety is mostly written. However, the daunting task of editing is drawing ever nearer, slowly but surely...

10/30/2019 11:05:49 am

Grizz is excited by your news. He seems to really enjoy the story and production. Having two voice talents really ups the game.
New questions.
Who designed the cover of your book? Feel free to drop a link if appropriate.
What do the elements on the cover represent?
Are you going to re-issue the covers to reflect the expansion of the series?
Was it hard to come up with the title? What was the process?

10/31/2019 06:31:08 am

There are three books in The Martian Diaries series. Volume 1. The Day Of The Martians, the design depicts the huge green Martian comet over Reculver Towers, an actual place in Kent, England. It was the site of one of the earliest Roman forts built on the north eastern Kent coast to resist Saxon invasion raids. The building in my image is the medieval church built later on the site and which you can still visit. The second book, Lake On The Moon, features Ogilvy's telescope viewing the green Martian lake in the story, and book 3 Gateway to Mars depicts the spaceship Excalibur on its way to the moon in 1940. All three covers have the green of Martian energy in the background for uniformity and continuation and I try to use the same colours in my promotional images. I will be searching for a superb artist with a vision, to do the feature cover for The Martian Diaries physical book set.

As you know, this series is my sequel to H.G.Wells' The War Of The Worlds, and the story is my idea of what could have happened to the original characters after Wells' first Martian invasion ended. The title of the trilogy, The Martian Diaries, came about because Ogilvy the astronomer starts a diary about the Martians which later becomes a vital resource in the fight back against the aliens. The second volume is titled Lake On The Moon, because it is suspected that the Martians have set up a base there, which to us on Earth appears as a green tear in the right eye of the 'Man in the Moon', when viewed through a telescope. Book 3 is titled Gateway to Mars because in the story it is necessary to reach the moon to find the antidote to the huge Martian problem left on Earth at the end of book 2. Once the trilogy is finished, there will be further incidental short stories (mainly single chapters) also under the umbrella of The Martian Diaries, which I am planning to write later, instead of a blog.

10/31/2019 09:34:30 am

There is more to your covers than I originally thought. I like the covers, the theme is evident.
New questions.
Were the character names difficult to develop? How did you choose them?
Have you entered any writing contests?
Have you won awards of any kind for your writing?
Did you go through the query process or did you go straight to self-publishing, and why?

Wilburson link

10/31/2019 05:55:29 pm

Where ever possible, I followed in the H.G.Wells tradition and kept the characters named the way he created them. Luckily, the Artilleryman for example, who was unnamed in The War Of The Worlds, has been promoted to Major. However I found it necessary to actually name H.G.Wells' writer in volume 2 Lake On The Moon and I chose George Wells, after the author Herbert George Wells. For the rest of my characters, I used popular names of the period.

I entered the Daily Mail First Novel Competition with a different story, before I became immersed in this continuation of The War Of The Worlds.

Readers Favorite gave book 1 The Day Of The Martians a 5 Star award and it was nominated in the 2019 Readers Choice Awards - Science Fiction category.

At the moment my sequel to The War Of The Worlds is only available as a self published audiobook, both digitally and The Day Of The Martians is also a limited edition collectible CD. However, many listeners have commented that it feels like an audiodrama - something like old time radio shows - probably because it also includes my own music and sound effects. I believe my USP is the way the story is currently presented. The Martian Diaries will not be available as a physical book set until the trilogy is complete. It is quite difficult to categorise my work as it is neither a physical book or a straight forward audiobook. I have therefore done some querying recently in the hope that an agent with suitable contacts could assist in getting the Martian Diaries in front of a wider audience. For now, I am enjoying the fact that volume 3 Gateway To Mars is mostly written and I still have the control over my work that self publishing brings.

10/31/2019 06:19:06 pm

With the worldwide explosion of audio books I would imagine that there will soon be more opportunities for contests and awards.
As a boy and into my young adult years, I listened to a great deal of old-time radio drama, I must agree with the other people, your work strongly reminds me of that type of entertainment.
There are many countries in Africa and elsewhere, that have English as an official or secondary language; there are many millions of people in some of these countries who access the internet through their phone. Nigeria, alone, has well over 40 million people on the internet through their phone only. That is a huge market for a book like yours. There are a number of posts on my "Highly Regarded Blogs" page that talk about that.
New questions.
There are many unethical practices in publishing, which one is the most unbearable in your mind?
Do you have a favorite book by another author?
Did you have a favorite book as a child?
Does writing have a spiritual or healing component for you, does it energize you or make you feel tired?

11/1/2019 12:29:08 pm

Brilliant Mark, thank you for those useful and helpful points. I will certainly look at your highly rated blogs page.

Unethical practices are happening everywhere so it is no surprise that it occurs in publishing too. One must do one's best to rise above it and at all times make sure your work is protected and that includes copyright.

There are several books I could read over and over,and I find that Asimov's Foundation series is a real treat every time.

The first science fiction book I ever read was Mission To Mercury by Hugh Walters, when I was about ten. I believe there was more than one book in the series, but this title has stuck in my mind.

I am always writing these days, and occasionally five hours can pass in what feels like five minutes. I am not sure if I feel energised afterwards, but certainly happy to be in the zone!

11/1/2019 12:41:44 pm

I hope you find these resources and others on my website useful. I have tried to gather informative blogs of interest to writers.
Asimov's Foundation was an amazing story! I loved it then and remember it very fondly. I would like to reread it sometime.
When you are in the zone, amazing things happen.
New questions.
Why is it important for writers to tap into the emotions of the characters?
Are you an under-writer or an over-writer?
When the first draft is done, do you need to add more to it to flesh it out or do you have to cut material because there is too much there?
Do you save the parts that didn't make it into the final version?

11/2/2019 05:43:48 pm

I am very excited about my WIP, Gateway To Mars, which is volume 3 of The Martian Diaries. It is certainly a challenge to write and I am not sure what Grizz will make of it! Fiction authors are tasked to make their characters rise from a two dimensional page, and one of the best ways to do that is to tap into the emotions of the characters to make them real and believable.

I am not an under-writer or an over-writer, simply because I do not want to irritate my editor! In fact, my hat is off to all hard working, long suffering editors, wherever they are and whatever language they work in. Where would the world be without them? My theory is, less is more, but it has to be well written. One of the later chapters in volume 2, Lake On The Moon, was so difficult to get right, I nearly gave up hope of ever finishing the entire book. I'm really happy with how the chapter eventually turned out after several rewrites. A different chapter was also removed from volume 2, when the book was finished and recorded. It was a tough decision at the time but, as Lord Alan Sugar says, 'Stick to what you know!' Mine, is to tell the story. Perhaps one day I might make a feature of the missing chapter!

11/2/2019 06:32:20 pm

Grizz is excited for the next installment. He is sure it will be worth the wait. Side stories are a good way to build and sustain interest for fans, between major releases.
I think your theory is right. It's okay for an author to leave some details out, readers can easily fill in minor gaps of action and movement with their own imagination.
New questions.
Have you ever used yourself or other acquaintances as a character for a starting point in a story? Would they recognize you or themselves in the story?
If you used a close friend or family member in a book, would you tell them or make sure that they wouldn't recognize themselves in the story?
Which is more fun to write, the protagonist or the antagonist, and why?
What is one thing you hate about your protagonist and one thing you love about the antagonist?

11/3/2019 11:46:55 am

Spoiler Alert! Hmmm... In my third volume, Gateway To Mars, I have written myself into the narrative, a sort of cameo appearance if you like, interacting with the characters under the massive dome of Terra Delta. I am planning to share some daily observations of life on Mars Base 3 shortly. I hope Grizz won't be upset by this revelation! The characters in Gateway to Mars are mostly new, with a few familiar ones thrown in, so, expect the twists and turns of volume 2. It will all culminate in a conclusion that I hope will make The Martian Diaries a true sequel to The War Of The Worlds.

All of my characters are fictional, with a close connection to either The War Of The Worlds or The Martian Diaries.

My WIP, Gateway to Mars is based on a new protagonist Jack Stent, found in volume 2, Lake On The Moon. He is the son of Julian Stent, the Astronomer Royal during H.G.Wells' first Martian invasion. I cannot say any more about the antagonist or Grizz will on my case about it!

Jack, who was very close to his step father George and Ogilvy, the astronomer, probably never embraced the possibilities of his full potential until he became my protagonist, and I have enjoyed bringing him back into the story. As for the Martians, you can find out all you need to know about them in The War Of The Worlds or The Martian Diaries.

I enjoy writing either the protagonist or the antagonist the same, simply because they are equally important to the story. Where would the three little pigs be without a menacing wolf? "Little pig, little pig, let me in..." I remember it well!

I have really enjoyed discussing The Martian Diaries with you and Grizz, and for the opportunity to explain some aspects of my work. I hope that you will find my third volume, Gateway to Mars, due out in 2020 – as exciting and satisfying as the first two volumes. Again, my many thanks and best wishes to you Mark. H.E.

11/3/2019 05:14:43 pm

Grizz and I eagerly await volume three. Thank you so much for taking time away from the project to share your experiences.