Spirituality is one of the most sought-after genres in the world, because there is constant need for them. Life passes us by really fast and sometimes, we all feel the need to slow down and find our inner peace. However, you cannot just sit down and write about your personal experiences in the spiritual plane, whether they consist of living a life of faith in yourself or the world, or a belief in God or another deity. Spiritual writing has a lot more to it than just your own personal experience. What you must always remember is that every person is unique, especially when it comes to our inner spirituality. If a path that you followed helped you reach your inner peace, it doesn’t mean that it will help others. The key when writing a book on spirituality is to connect with the reader and help them find their own inner peace.
1. Choose your Path
If you’ve decided to write a book about spirituality, it’s safe to assume that you’ve already had an illuminating experience that has changed you, your life and your beliefs. It can be anything from finding God, to travelling on the metaphysical plane. It’s important to be consistent in your faith; don’t ever mix several themes and spiritual paths into one book. Most of your readers will buy books with specific spiritual themes and paths of finding inner peace, rather than books that talk about spirituality in general.
2. Share your experience
Tell your story. What led you on your path? Was it a near death experience or travelling on the astral plane? Find the words to best show, not just tell the reader your story. Look deep within yourself and look for the right words, and remember, you need to connect with the reader on an inner level, so make sure to sound sincere. Be a spiritual guru instead of a preacher. You want to guide your readers into finding the path that will lead them to their inner peace, not to force doctrines that will push them away from their emotional and spiritual core.
3. State your beliefs
After you’ve shared your experience, you need to explain in great detail your insights on the mysteries of life and our existence and all the lessons you’ve learned on the way. With the help of the story of how you’ve found your inner peace you should tell the world of the wisdoms you’ve gained while you’ve travelled on the spiritual path. Express your beliefs clearly, using the story of your own illumination as the proof of the facts you will present to your readers.
4. Find the practical use of your insight
This is the reason why readers will want to read your books. Finding inner peace is one thing, but keeping it is completely different. We’ve all had moments in our lives when we lose our faith in the world itself and that is why we need to have a constant beacon of light to show us the way. In this part, you need to express the practical daily use of your insight and wisdom, both in moments of peace and inner turmoil, so that the readers will always have a basis to fall back to, a starting point that will help them get back on the track of spiritual enlightenment.
5. Reach your audience
Or in other words, publish your book. You can look for publishing houses that focus solely on publishing spiritual books, but this can be quite difficult due to the subjectivity of both the writing and publishing process and from how personal books on spirituality are. Therefore, you might not get positive feedback immediately. However, you can always publish it independently. Find the right type of people who will buy your book and benefit greatly from it as well, and in your marketing include strategies that are specifically designed to reach them, which will ensure that your readers will be touched by your book.
Editor’s Note: This article was first published on e-Books India in December 2014.
Georgina Roy wants to live in a world filled with magic. As a 22-year-old art student, she’s moonlighting as a writer and is content to fill notebooks and sketchbooks with magical creatures and amazing new worlds. When she is not at school, or scribbling away in a notebook, you can usually find her curled up, reading a good urban fantasy novel, or writing on her laptop, trying to create her own.