My new book, Writing With a Mission: How to Create a Successful Career as a Grant Writer” will be available in just a few short days (September 9th). This book is the book that Bruce (my co-author) and I wish we had when we were at the beginning of our careers as grant writers and…
It looks like COVID-19 may be here for a while, which will likely force arts and culture nonprofits to continue finding new ways to reach their audiences and patrons. Since this means that in-person gatherings and programs will be curtailed for the foreseeable future, virtual and online offerings will be king. Of course, that…
I had planned to write this blog post on becoming a grant consultant long before the COVID-19 crisis hit, but now this topic seems even more timely than it did a month ago. Last year my business partner, Bruce Ripley, and I wrote the book Granted: How to Break Into Freelance Grant Writing and…
Responsive marketing has been around for a while now, but if you’ve never heard that term before, don’t feel bad. It’s not something that gets talked about a lot in the nonprofit sector. Which is a shame, because it could really boost engagement with nonprofit patrons and donors and who doesn’t need a little more…
On March 27th I had the pleasure of attending the 2019 ReWrite Conference in Lexington, Kentucky. The conference was presented by KY GPA (Grant Professionals Association) and the Kentucky Nonprofit Network and it was absolutely fabulous! For those of you who were unable to attend, I’ve put together some of my favorite takeaways from the…
In the minds of grant makers, impact is king. It’s what they want to see most in your proposals and ultimately in your outcomes. But here comes some tough love: arts organizations are not always great at creating evaluation strategies for their programming that allow them to adequately demonstrate impact. I touched on…
When you’re focused on writing grant proposals and trying to secure awards for your nonprofit, it can be really easy to zero in solely on your proposal. You worry about how well it’s written, whether or not your budget is easy to read and understand, if you forgot any typos, or if you’ve crafted solid…
If you have been a grant writer for any amount of time, then the prospect of joining a professional organization or maybe even pursuing professional credentials has probably crossed your mind. But like many, you may not know where to start, which organizations are worth checking out, and whether or not joining any of them…
Today’s topic is near and dear to my heart because I want to talk about burnout and how to avoid it. See, many years ago I worked like an absolute lunatic for my nonprofit and although I was proud of my work, I was so burnt out I was practically char-grilled. Let me set…
So you’ve come to the realization that your nonprofit needs a little help with grants. Maybe you just need a few proposals written or maybe you need a full-blown strategy created. Either way, you’ve decided to hire a consultant to help out. Great! But now what? There are lots of grant writers in the world,…