Lucy Ashford
@lucyashford
I write novels set in the past, and I've had historical thrillers published under the name Elizabeth Redfern. Warning - they're dark! I also write Bridgerton-style romances as Lucy Ashford. ❤️ (I paint a bit too 🎨)
It's been a beautiful day here in Derbyshire. Clearly these lupins love the sunshine - and the bees love their pollen 🐝 #gardening #flowers #nature #bees
We've had plenty of rain in Derbyshire lately, so I took a break from writing to paint a watery landscape #art #painting #watercolours
Some historical thrillers I've written in the past, as Elizabeth Redfern (Be warned!They're dark!) #writing #writer #historical #thrillers #author
I've just sent my latest historical ms to my lovely agent - and I'm doing a bit of painting while waiting for 'the verdict'. Trouble is, I find that painting can be just as strenuous as writing... 😮💨🧑🎨📝 #historical #Regency #painting #writing
Another recent photo of the beautiful Yorkshire dales. I love the way the sun catches the distant hills.
Yesterday I took a break from writing my latest Regency adventure, and did a bit of painting in the Derbyshire countryside (watercolour)
I've just spent a week in the Yorkshire Dales, to take a break from writing my latest. It's so beautiful there - and quiet! (don't tell anyone 🤫)
This is my watercolour sketch of a hellebore - I love their delicacy
Just a few roses have survived the recent heavy rain. Here's a pink beauty
Whatever else you think about 2025 - it's been a good year for the roses. Love this beauty
Lovely little lake high above Chatsworth, Derbyshire. Ideal for dreaming up my next story - or just dreaming 😎 🖊️
It's been a lovely day so I've not done any writing. Instead, I pottered around the garden and watched a blackbird splashing in the bird bath. (I suppose there should be flowers, but maybe it hardly needs them? 🌺)
Yesterday we went round the peony garden at Chatsworth House. and the colours and varieties are sublime - just like yours. I took a few photos to remember them by 🌺
Right - my latest book has been sent to my editor 🤞so I've been indulging in a watercolour dabble again. This time it's a (fairly imaginative) depiction of my favourite castle of all, the former coastal Viking stronghold of Peel, in the Isle of Man
Yet another fascinating castle, Bodiam, in Sussex. It was built in the fourteenth century when a French invasion was feared, and its superstitious stonemasons carved ritual protection marks into its doorways and windows, hoping to guard it against supernatural forces also.
For Regency romance fans - I was writing up revisions to my latest WIP, when I noticed that an earlier book of mine, The Master of Calverley Hall (Harlequin), is on kindle unlimited in the U.S. #writing #authors #historical #fiction #romance #heroes #enemiestolovers #strongheroines #Regency
A coastal scene on a hot day (acrylics) 🎨 'And the gentle winds and waters near Make music to the lonely ear' (Byron: It Is The Hour)
Gorgeous weather here in Derbyshire, so I've been strolling and sketching. AND... I'm nearly through the revisions to my latest book (reminder to self - Don't alter too much! Don't dig plot holes!) 🙄🎨📝
Yesterday I put aside my writer's pen and got out my watercolours instead. Here's Bradda Head in the Isle of Man, the site of ancient copper and lead mines. (Looks a little like Poldark's Cornwall, do you think?) 🎨😍
This reminds me of those bad writing moments, when you realise there's a huge hole in your plotline and you'll have to do a hell of a lot of work to get it right. 😧🗑️✏️ Anyone else??
Whenever I come across an old country track like this one in Cumbria, I'm reminded of Kipling's poem about the ghosts that haunt a long-forgotten path. It's short, it's called 'The Way Through The Woods' - and it's a gem.
Another castle I love, Kenilworth. It's both the setting and the title of a historical novel by Sir Walter Scott, about the Earl of Leicester's dangerous ambition to marry Queen Elizabeth I. Scott was a huge admirer of Jane Austen. But while his popularity as a writer has faded, hers has endured.
Fellow writers - isn't it the best feeling in the world when you're struggling with a plot glitch in your novel, and the solution suddenly decides to show up? (As if to say, 'Hey, I've been here all the time...') 🪄😲
Trees at Chatsworth a few days ago. How I love them! As for revisions to the latest wip, I note that my editor advises me to dismiss some annoying minor characters. I am doing so with pleasure. Only wish I could do the same in real life... 🫢🖊️