Stories that Spark
joy, friendship, acceptance, imagination, inspiration, and knowledge.
Little Reads
These stories might be short, but they are mighty. Each book was written from a place deep with meaning, heart and fun.
Grand Adventures
How amazing is it to take on a grand adventure! These books will take you deeper into stories that celebrate the lives of every person in the book.
Deborah Elwell Arfken.
I am a proud member of the
Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI).
People, history, people in history.
Those are some of my favorite words.
I’ve been writing a long time, starting in junior high school when I entered Vermont history contests. When I won several of them, I was hooked on writing. In high school, I even won the state award for the national Teachers of English.
Always a lover of learning, I graduated from The College of Wooster (B.A.), The University of Pennsylvania (M.A.), and The University of Tennessee (Ed.D.)
As a teacher, I taught a range of grade levels - seventh graders all the way through graduate students. After retiring as a university administrator and professor and writing numerous academic articles, I added another age level to my teaching experience. I served as the interim president and CEO of Siskin Children’s Institute with its bustling early learning center as well as medical clinics. Those children were in love with life! Several years after, I became the interim executive director of Little Miss Mag, an early learning center. In both centers, I read regularly to the children, sometimes sharing my own stories.
However, my chief audience has been my grandchildren who inspired me to write books about animals, curious children, and even children’s squabbles.
The art of teaching and writing for children share one thing: it’s all about the heart.
