What Jessica Vaught Wishes Someone Had Told Her When She Was Struggling in School

For Jessica Vaught, The Rainbow Pencil began with a realization that reached far beyond writing a children’s book.

Jessica grew up knowing what it felt like to learn differently. She repeated a grade, spent years in basic skills instruction, attended tutoring, and stayed after school for extra help. Traditional approaches to learning simply did not seem to connect with the way her mind worked.

Then, in high school, something changed.

Jessica discovered business education courses and, for the first time, found an environment in which her strengths seemed to click. She became intensely focused and began to recognize abilities that had been difficult to see when success was measured in other ways.

That discovery eventually took her to Coastal Carolina University, where she graduated a year early with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Human Resource Management. She continued directly into the university’s MBA program, earning her graduate degree with a 3.6 GPA at just 22 years old.

Years later, Jessica would begin looking at those early experiences from an entirely different perspective.

A Diagnosis That Changed the Way She Saw Her Own Story

In 2024, Jessica’s son was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.

Her immediate focus was on him and what his diagnosis could mean for his education, his future, and the opportunities available to him.

Jessica knew she wanted to advocate for her child, but the experience also caused her to reconsider her own childhood.

The struggles she had experienced in school. The frustration of trying approaches that never quite worked. The relief she eventually felt when she discovered an area that matched the way she thought and learned.

Her son’s diagnosis became a catalyst for Jessica to look inward and begin processing some of those experiences in a new way.

She started writing.

Multiple journals eventually became part of the inspiration for The Rainbow Pencil.

But the book was also taking shape during one of the most emotionally difficult periods of Jessica’s life. Around the same time, she lost her grandmother, whom she loved deeply. Within months, she also lost her Labrador Retriever mix, a rescue who had been part of her family for eight years, after the dog was diagnosed with stage 4 lymphoma.

Jessica describes the result simply: “The Rainbow Pencil is a beautiful book born from significant grief.”

Meet Valerie and The Rainbow Pencil

Inspired by real-life experiences, The Rainbow Pencil follows Valerie, an eight-year-old girl with an active imagination and her own way of understanding the world.

Valerie learns differently from many of her peers and relies heavily on visuals to process information. She carries a journal with her so she can capture ideas whenever inspiration strikes.

Then she has an idea for something extraordinary: a magical rainbow pencil.

On the outside, the pencil remains yellow. It still writes in ordinary grey. But what Valerie sees within the pencil is something very different.

She sees herself.

Through the colors of the rainbow, the story connects positive character traits with a larger message about individuality. Valerie is creative, social, fun, imaginative, and an out-of-the-box thinker. Those qualities are not things she needs to overcome.

They are part of what makes her Valerie, and she was never supposed to be anyone else.

Turning Grief Into Something Another Child Could Carry

For Jessica, writing The Rainbow Pencil became part of her own healing process.

The losses she experienced within such a short period left her carrying what she describes as complex grief. Writing gave that grief somewhere to go.

Instead of allowing the experience to remain only painful, she began shaping it into something that might help another child, parent, or family see themselves differently.

The process also strengthened Jessica’s belief that people have far more in common than they sometimes realize.

We may not know what another person has experienced. We may not understand how someone else learns, thinks, processes information, or moves through the world.

But underneath those differences is a shared capacity for compassion and connection.

As Jessica puts it: “We are all rainbow pencils.”

Bringing The Rainbow Pencil to Life With Publish Pros

Once Jessica had written the manuscript, she knew book production was not something she wanted to navigate entirely on her own.

That meant finding people who could help turn the manuscript into the book she imagined without taking creative control away from her.

Jessica began working with Publish Pros after an initial consultation. She recalls that first phone call as an important turning point because it gave her the confidence to move forward with the project.

From there, the process became highly collaborative.

Jessica worked closely with the Publish Pros team on the appearance and layout of the book, exchanging ideas throughout production and remaining actively involved in creative decisions.

She also worked directly with Publish Pros founder Rich Carnahan through video meetings and ongoing communication as the book moved toward publication.

For Jessica, feeling heard throughout that process mattered.

The book itself held enormous emotional significance, and much of the grief surrounding its creation was still fresh while production was underway. She remembers the team’s kindness and professionalism as much as the technical work involved in creating the finished book.

There were more than 100 emails exchanged during the project, with Jessica noting that questions were typically answered within 24 to 48 hours.

From beginning production to becoming available for purchase, The Rainbow Pencil was completed in approximately four months.

Why Asking for Help Matters

Jessica’s publishing experience also changed the way she thinks about asking for professional help.

Authors often feel as though creating a book means they should somehow know how to do everything themselves.

Write it. Edit it. Design it. Format it. Publish it. Market it.

Jessica sees that differently.

Knowing what you do well also means recognizing when another part of the project would benefit from someone else’s expertise.

“I believe it is so important to never feel embarrassed to ask for help on a project that holds tremendous purpose and value,” she says.

For Jessica, getting help with production did not mean giving up ownership of her vision. It gave her people who could help execute that vision while she remained the author making the final decisions.

Jessica’s Advice for First-Time Authors

For writers considering self-publishing but hesitating because they do not know where to begin, Jessica’s advice is centered on action.

Do not allow uncertainty about the process to keep the manuscript sitting untouched for years.

Learn what you need to learn. Find help where you need help. Maintain control over your work.

But move.

Her advice to aspiring authors is simple:

“Don’t write a book and then wait 10 years. Write the book, take action now, and enjoy the ride!”

Discover Jessica Vaught and The Rainbow Pencil

Jessica Vaught lives in Loris, South Carolina.

Readers can learn more about Jessica, The Rainbow Pencil, and her work at: TheRainbowPencil.com

Copies of The Rainbow Pencil are available through: TheRainbowPencil.com/books/

Jessica can also be found on Instagram at @penziepressllc.