How Books Work: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
As a ghostwriter and book coach, I’m often approached by authors who want to write spiritual memoirs—accounts of their personal experience of growth, transformation, and healing.
I’m not going to lie—writing a good spiritual memoir is really, really hard. Just like dreams, spiritual experiences often make the most sense to the person who experienced them, and it’s often quite difficult to convey them to readers in a way that will keep them engaged.
However, just because it’s hard doesn’t mean it’s impossible! Today, I’d like to take a look at the techniques Elizabeth Gilbert used to write her iconic spiritual memoir Eat, Pray, Love.
1. Radical Honesty
Gilbert's greatest asset is her radical honesty. She doesn't present herself as a hero or a victim, but as an often-contradictory human being. From the opening pages, she lays bare her deepest struggles—a painful divorce, depression, and a sense of complete personal loss.
This vulnerability is not self-indulgence, but a bridge to connection. By revealing her most raw and unfiltered emotions, Gilbert creates an immediate intimacy with the reader. She demonstrates that true vulnerability is not weakness, but a form of courage that invites empathy and understanding.
Takeaway for writers: Readers will experience your writing as authentic when you expose your most vulnerable moments without fear or pretense.
2. Structure, Structure, Structure
Eat, Pray, Love’s is divided into three distinct but tightly related sections, covering her sojourns in Italy, India, and Indonesia.
Each location represents more than a geographic destination. Italy becomes a journey of pleasure and self-nurturing. India represents spiritual discipline and inner work. Indonesia emerges as a place of balance and ultimate healing. This deliberate structure transforms a personal travelogue into a metaphorical journey of transformation.
Takeaway for writers: Whether’s it a set of locations, time periods, or themes, finding a strong framework for your material gives your book focus and helps readers navigate your story without feeling lost or overwhelmed.
3. Memorable Voice
Gilbert's writing voice is perhaps the book's most magnetic quality. She balances self-deprecating humor with profound introspection, creating a tone that feels like a conversation with a deeply insightful friend.
Her ability to find humor in painful moments prevents the narrative from becoming maudlin. She can describe a spiritual breakdown with the same wit she uses to describe a delicious pizza, making complex emotional experiences accessible and relatable.
Takeaway for Writers: A memoir isn’t just a series of things that happened to you—it’s how you tell them that transforms raw experience into a wonderful book.
Final Reflections
Eat, Pray, Love demonstrates that spiritual memoirs can resonate with readers when the author:
Embraces vulnerability
Finds a solid container for their material
Entertains and befriends the reader, rather than simply telling them what happened
If you’re contemplating writing a spiritual memoir, Gilbert's book is a reminder that the most compelling stories are not about extraordinary events, but about how we make meaning from our experiences.
Want to learn more about writing self-help and spirituality books? Sign up for my live, online 4-week class, Words that Teach, Words that Heal: Secrets of Self-Help and Spirituality Writing, beginning April 8th, 2025, and sign up for my newsletter.
