Many people have extensive experience in writing grants and don’t even know it. If you’ve ever asked anyone for anything in writing, you probably followed many of the procedures outlined in this book. That’s all a grant proposal is.

How can you harness that power for good? I tell you exactly how in this book.

Grant writing can be a satisfying and rewarding experience, no matter if you’re a volunteer or building a career. It’s a great feeling when the check comes in the mail, but there’s a lot to do before you can start counting the money.

Throughout the book, I refer to the other people at a nonprofit you’ll interact with in the process of creating a grant proposal. Of course, if you’re volunteering for a small nonprofit with no paid staff or one just being formed, you may have only yourself to rely on for all the information you need. At least you won’t have other people relentlessly editing your copy!

Grant writing entails a lot more than just writing a grant. You are developing financial resources for your charity. Grant writing requires knowledge of the philanthropic field, excellent general writing skills, organizational and project management ability, and a personal touch. That’s a broad range of talents and knowledge, but you’ll find information on all of them here.

I’ve divided the book into six parts:

Part 1, Getting Started, provides you with the basics about what it takes to be a good grant writer and what the process of writing a grant will be like.

Part 2, Where the Money Is, takes you behind the scenes of all the different institutions that make grants to see what makes them tick. I also provide you with a primer for getting a grant from an individual by learning what basic human emotions come into play.

Part 3, Research, or Just How Nosy Are You? guides you in satisfying your curiosity about funders and all the people associated with them, and how to use that information to win them over.

Part 4, Strategies for Success, teaches you the little tricks of the trade to warm up your prospects before you ask them for money and to get yourself organized so everything can proceed according to a plan.

Part 5, Writing the Proposal, shows you how to gather the information you need from your colleagues and put it into the form the funder wants to receive, including spelling it out in dollars and cents in the budget.

Part 6, Everything Else You Need to Know, covers what might be the most difficult part of the whole business—waiting to hear how you did. Individuals seeking grants face special challenges, which I address in a separate chapter. And for those of you who would like the “in-brief” version of grant writing or a solid summary of what you’re supposed to have learned from these pages, I’ve ended the book with a whirlwind grant-writing course. Finally, you’ll find two chapters of advice on how to go about making a living as a freelance grant writer.

The appendixes include a glossary that covers all the insider lingo; an extensive listing of reference resources, online and off; and examples of complete grants.

In addition to the many examples you’ll find throughout the book, a number of useful documents and spreadsheets can be downloaded from idiotsguides.com under “Book Extras.”

Throughout the book, you’ll find tips on different aspects of the grant business:

During the past two decades, I’ve been fortunate to work for a number of knowledgeable people who have gently introduced me to the philanthropic and grant-seeking world. I’ve learned so much from each of them, but I also have learned much from the grant writers who have worked for me. They, too, have given me insights into the process of getting a grant, while putting up with my endless editing of their documents. Special thanks go to my colleagues Leah Maddrie, Kate Taylor, and Rados Piletich, who read and gave me advice on various parts of this book.

I must also thank Theodore Berger, former executive director of the New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), for allowing me to include examples from NYFA grants. All examples in this book not related to NYFA are about fictional charities, and no funder referred to in any grant-writing example is intended to represent the policies and intent of any actual funder.

Finally, many thanks to my agent, Marilyn Allen, without whom this book would not exist.

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Grant Writing, Third Edition, was reviewed by experts who double-checked the accuracy of what you’ll learn here, to help us ensure that this book gives you everything you need to know about grant writing. Special thanks are extended to Nancy S. Clarke and Tess O’Dwyer.

All terms mentioned in this book that are known to be or are suspected of being trademarks or service marks have been appropriately capitalized. Alpha Books and Penguin Group (USA) Inc. cannot attest to the accuracy of this information. Use of a term in this book should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark.