Category Archives: grant writing

End on the Last Page

This is my one of my favorite grant writing secrets – not because it’s brilliant, but because it always brings a quizzical look to peoples’ faces.

Here’s the deal. If you are allowed 25 pages of narrative for a grant proposal, you need to end your proposal on the 25th page. Everyone else will.  If yours is shorter, the readers will notice that you didn’t use all of the space allocated to you and that everyone else did.  Then the readers will start flipping through your proposal trying to find what you left out.  Once they start looking for something missing, you’re done – because they will find something missing, some detail that isn’t clear enough.

So, if you find that you are finished with a grant narrative and you haven’t ended on the last page, go back and add more detail to your proposal. Where could data make your case stronger?  What element of your program design could be described more fully?

Add enough detail so your proposal ends on the last page.

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

The Relationship Between Evaluation and Grant Writing

While it’s true that evaluation and grant writing are completely separate disciplines, there is an important link between them. Yes, report writing and grant writing both involve writing, but the connection is even more important than that and, unfortunately, it is often overlooked.

The connection?  Data.

The data you gather to evaluate your programs is very valuable for demonstrating both your need for additional funding and your capacity to implement programs effectively.

Even if there is not a grant proposal on the horizon for you, you should prioritize your data collection and evaluation activities very highly. Then, when a grant opportunity comes up that is right for you, you’ll be ready.

When I teach grant writing workshops, I ask participants to imagine that they are grant makers.  You have $5.00 in your pocket to give to someone.  There are many people competing for your favor, and you are charged with a very difficult decision – who should get your $5.00?  You want to spend it well so it will really make a difference.  Everyone has a need, but some people have solid evaluation data to demonstrate not oly what they need, but to prove that when they implement a solution, it is successful in meeting the need they targeted. Wouldn’t you want your money to go to those programs that have powerful evidence of positive impact?

When you get the grant, the loop gets even stronger because you can use some of your grant funds to support evaluation activities, which help you build an even stronger case in future fund raising and grant writing.

The Relationship Between Evaluation and Grant Writing

While it’s true that evaluation and grant writing are completely separate disciplines, there is an important link between them. Yes, report writing and grant writing both involve writing, but the connection is even more important than that and, unfortunately, it is often overlooked.

The connection?  Data.

The data you gather to evaluate your programs is very valuable for demonstrating both your need for additional funding and your capacity to implement programs effectively.

Even if there is not a grant proposal on the horizon for you, you should prioritize your data collection and evaluation activities very highly. Then, when a grant opportunity comes up that is right for you, you’ll be ready.

When I teach grant writing workshops, I ask participants to imagine that they are grant makers.  You have $5.00 in your pocket to give to someone.  There are many people competing for your favor, and you are charged with a very difficult decision – who should get your $5.00?  You want to spend it well so it will really make a difference.  Everyone has a need, but some people have solid evaluation data to demonstrate not oly what they need, but to prove that when they implement a solution, it is successful in meeting the need they targeted. Wouldn’t you want your money to go to those programs that have powerful evidence of positive impact?

When you get the grant, the loop gets even stronger because you can use some of your grant funds to support evaluation activities, which help you build an even stronger case in future fund raising and grant writing.

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Grant Writing – A Romantic Misconception

By Derek Link, Non-Profit Consultant

The image of a warm fire crackling softly in the background, a golden retriever slumbering at his feet, perhaps even a hot cup of tea steaming beside the keyboard is the image of a grant writer’s days. No stress involved, just bucolic surroundings, creative narrative editing, just an aura of cerebral bliss, day-after-day.

Yeah, right. It’s more like a flue fire roaring, dog barking, cold forgotten teabag in a cup that was hot yesterday, piles of paper with scribbles and spotted with post-its, draft after red-edited draft scattered in loose piles on chairs and couches, and an impending deadline that is literally a deadline.

Grant writing, like most writing, can be romanticized beyond reality. Oh, there’s an art to it all right, but even art is mostly – as artists will tell you – about dogged determination and ongoing stubborn effort. Grant writing is all about striving with narrative to make it say what you want it to say in the way you want it to be said, and all within the confines of a page limit, a specific font size, and between margins of unbending width.

Grant writing is more akin to technical writing than to creative writing. Grant writing necessitates curbing your creative juices in order to stay on point and not stray off into irrelevant and space-stealing witticisms or flowery jibber-jabber. There is an element of creative writing to a grant because for the most part you’re writing about a program that does not exist yet, but effective grant narratives are mostly direct, expository copy in topic-specific, technical language.

I’ve had conversations with people about what I do and I tend to get this dreamy-eyed response from some of them. Their verbal response goes something like, “Oh, I’d LOVE to be a grant writer someday” as they mentally drift off to the study in fuzzy slippers. Their ignorance amuses me because I know the truth, but then I was there at one time myself.

Oh, don’t get me wrong. I am not masochistic and making a living writing grants as some form of monastic self-flagellation. I do enjoy it, but it is definitely a love-hate relationship. I love the challenge and hate the deadline. I love the research and hate the restrictions.I love the competition and hate losing. I love the fact that there is a financial reward for the client (and me). I do enjoy grant writing, but the romance was gone forever as soon as I got my first edit and response from my grant writing mentor.

In my pre-grant-writing-career fantasies I had imagined finishing a sparkling narrative, pulling the crisp paper from the typewriter with a flourish and placing it respectfully upon the finished stack, putting a match to my pipe and puffing happily whilst sipping my steaming Earl Gray as Skipper wagged in proper canine admiration.

Sadly, there’s always someone who’s going to inject reality and burst the bubble. In my case it was a short, slightly sarcastic, practical-joker who could brilliantly dissect my narratives and never apologize for the lack of anesthetic. Alas, most unrealistic romantic grant writing fantasies are bound to end that way.

Grant Writing – A Romantic Misconception

By Derek Link, Non-Profit Consultant

The image of a warm fire crackling softly in the background, a golden retriever slumbering at his feet, perhaps even a hot cup of tea steaming beside the keyboard is the image of a grant writer’s days. No stress involved, just bucolic surroundings, creative narrative editing, just an aura of cerebral bliss, day-after-day.

Yeah, right. It’s more like a flue fire roaring, dog barking, cold forgotten teabag in a cup that was hot yesterday, piles of paper with scribbles and spotted with post-its, draft after red-edited draft scattered in loose piles on chairs and couches, and an impending deadline that is literally a deadline.

Grant writing, like most writing, can be romanticized beyond reality. Oh, there’s an art to it all right, but even art is mostly – as artists will tell you – about dogged determination and ongoing stubborn effort. Grant writing is all about striving with narrative to make it say what you want it to say in the way you want it to be said, and all within the confines of a page limit, a specific font size, and between margins of unbending width.

Grant writing is more akin to technical writing than to creative writing. Grant writing necessitates curbing your creative juices in order to stay on point and not stray off into irrelevant and space-stealing witticisms or flowery jibber-jabber. There is an element of creative writing to a grant because for the most part you’re writing about a program that does not exist yet, but effective grant narratives are mostly direct, expository copy in topic-specific, technical language.

I’ve had conversations with people about what I do and I tend to get this dreamy-eyed response from some of them. Their verbal response goes something like, “Oh, I’d LOVE to be a grant writer someday” as they mentally drift off to the study in fuzzy slippers. Their ignorance amuses me because I know the truth, but then I was there at one time myself.

Oh, don’t get me wrong. I am not masochistic and making a living writing grants as some form of monastic self-flagellation. I do enjoy it, but it is definitely a love-hate relationship. I love the challenge and hate the deadline. I love the research and hate the restrictions.I love the competition and hate losing. I love the fact that there is a financial reward for the client (and me). I do enjoy grant writing, but the romance was gone forever as soon as I got my first edit and response from my grant writing mentor.

In my pre-grant-writing-career fantasies I had imagined finishing a sparkling narrative, pulling the crisp paper from the typewriter with a flourish and placing it respectfully upon the finished stack, putting a match to my pipe and puffing happily whilst sipping my steaming Earl Gray as Skipper wagged in proper canine admiration.

Sadly, there’s always someone who’s going to inject reality and burst the bubble. In my case it was a short, slightly sarcastic, practical-joker who could brilliantly dissect my narratives and never apologize for the lack of anesthetic. Alas, most unrealistic romantic grant writing fantasies are bound to end that way.

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Lessons Learned from Failure

Admitting failure is no fun.  Talking about it is even less fun. However, failure can be very valuable if it helps you avoid repeating it.

We have been fortunate to be very successful with grant writing, but there have been some failures.  Here are some of the most important lessons that we at Creative Resources & Research have learned from failure:

  • Attend the webinar. The Federal Register is the official word on grant requirements, but the RFP, and other forms of guidance (like the funder’s bidder’s conference or webinar) explain things that may not be clear.  We are currently in the process of helping a client appeal a negative funding decision in which guidance provided during the funder’s informational webinar conflicted with guidance in the Federal Register. While the law is clear on the issue and we may very well win the appeal, a lot of discomfort could have been avoided if we had just attended the webinar.  A representative from our client’s organization did participate in the webinar, but he didn’t know what to look for.  We should have participated.  Next time we will.
  • Do some research into previously funded grantees. Sometimes a funder provides a long list of eligible applicants, but that doesn’t mean those are all preferred applicants.  Take a look at previous grantees to get an idea of the types of organizations they like to fund. Recently, we participated in a mentoring grant competition that was open to schools and non-profit agencies.  Our clients were schools.  We were not successful.  After the fact, we realized that almost all (all but ONE) of the successful grantees in recent years had been non-profit agencies.  A little research would have saved a lot of effort.
  • It is essential that two people review the final document for submittal. People make mistakes.  they leave out appendices and required grant components by mistake, especially when they are under the pressure of a deadline.  It is much less likely that a mistake will make it out of your office if at least two people review the final application before it is submitted.

Lessons Learned from Failure

Admitting failure is no fun.  Talking about it is even less fun. However, failure can be very valuable if it helps you avoid repeating it.

We have been fortunate to be very successful with grant writing, but there have been some failures.  Here are some of the most important lessons that we at Creative Resources & Research have learned from failure:

  • Attend the webinar. The Federal Register is the official word on grant requirements, but the RFP, and other forms of guidance (like the funder’s bidder’s conference or webinar) explain things that may not be clear.  We are currently in the process of helping a client appeal a negative funding decision in which guidance provided during the funder’s informational webinar conflicted with guidance in the Federal Register. While the law is clear on the issue and we may very well win the appeal, a lot of discomfort could have been avoided if we had just attended the webinar.  A representative from our client’s organization did participate in the webinar, but he didn’t know what to look for.  We should have participated.  Next time we will.
  • Do some research into previously funded grantees. Sometimes a funder provides a long list of eligible applicants, but that doesn’t mean those are all preferred applicants.  Take a look at previous grantees to get an idea of the types of organizations they like to fund. Recently, we participated in a mentoring grant competition that was open to schools and non-profit agencies.  Our clients were schools.  We were not successful.  After the fact, we realized that almost all (all but ONE) of the successful grantees in recent years had been non-profit agencies.  A little research would have saved a lot of effort.
  • It is essential that two people review the final document for submittal. People make mistakes.  they leave out appendices and required grant components by mistake, especially when they are under the pressure of a deadline.  It is much less likely that a mistake will make it out of your office if at least two people review the final application before it is submitted.
Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Making Time for Grant Writing by Focusing on the Dream

I’m thinking about Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy today, and how our lives are so much different – and better – because of his courage and his focus on his dream. While there are many lessons we can all learn from his life, there is one that relates to grant writing that is on my mind today – finding the time.

I hear it from people all the time: “I’m just too busy for grant writing.” “I’m too busy doing my job to even think about going for money to give me even more work.” “There simply isn’t enough time.”

The next time you find yourself saying that you don’t have the time for grant writing, I’d like you to take a few minutes to stop and think about the children who attend your school or the people served by your non-profit organization. Visualize how their lives are now. Then visualize how their lives would be different if the innovative programs you have been dreaming about were a reality. See the present.  See the possibility.

Now understand that YOU are the bridge between those two realities.  You CAN find the time to make the dream real.

If MLK Jr’s legacy means anything to you, use it inspire you to do what he did – don’t let a little personal inconvenience stop you from making a difference for others.

You CAN find the time.

Making Time for Grant Writing by Focusing on the Dream

I’m thinking about Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy today, and how our lives are so much different – and better – because of his courage and his focus on his dream. While there are many lessons we can all learn from his life, there is one that relates to grant writing that is on my mind today – finding the time.

I hear it from people all the time: “I’m just too busy for grant writing.” “I’m too busy doing my job to even think about going for money to give me even more work.” “There simply isn’t enough time.”

The next time you find yourself saying that you don’t have the time for grant writing, I’d like you to take a few minutes to stop and think about the children who attend your school or the people served by your non-profit organization. Visualize how their lives are now. Then visualize how their lives would be different if the innovative programs you have been dreaming about were a reality. See the present.  See the possibility.

Now understand that YOU are the bridge between those two realities.  You CAN find the time to make the dream real.

If MLK Jr’s legacy means anything to you, use it inspire you to do what he did – don’t let a little personal inconvenience stop you from making a difference for others.

You CAN find the time.

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Staying in the Present

Thoughts from Grant Coach, MaryEllen Bergh, on staying in the present:
“Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift; that is why they call it the present.” Eleanor Roosevelt.

I have been told quite frequently that the universe continues to put things in front of us until we master them. Being in the present moment is clearly something that I have to work on as that concept is quite often put in my path. I might find myself waking up in the middle of the night thinking “I should have done this…I should have done that…” on a grant that was just submitted (worrying about something that is past!) or plop myself right into the future about a recent proposal with a “What if the committee takes too long in review and we have to maintain the timeline?”…”What if we bid too high?…or too low?” (worrying about something that hasn’t even happened yet!). When I catch myself wandering off with these thoughts, I take a few deep breaths and acknowledge that the present is perfect and express gratitude for the opportunity to write that grant or submit that proposal.

Being present protects us from being completely consumed by worry. It’s hard to worry when you are looking at all the amazing things surrounding you in the right here and the right now (key word: amazing). When we are fully present we may find a new discovery or a novel way to describe a concept – one that may have been hidden by past or future thoughts. In the present we can get some clarity around our work because we have the freedom to focus…and we get to choose. There is no choice in the past or the future.

You’ll find more wisdom from the Grant Coach in the Coach’s Corner area of the GrantGoddess.com member section.