No one grows up wanting to be a grant writer (or any kind of fundraiser, for that matter). Most of us fall into it out of necessity, either as part of our jobs or because we want to raise some significant money for a cause we believe in.

You might want to write a grant proposal, for example, if …

Whatever your motivation for wanting to be a grant writer, you’ll want to produce a professional proposal that will withstand the scrutiny of foundation staff and get funded!

Despite the proliferation of new foundations in the last two decades, there are still far more organizations and individuals seeking grants than there are organizations and individuals making grants. In fact, nonprofits outnumber grantmaking foundations by about 20 to 1. Many well-known organizations have large, well-paid development staffs vying for this money, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be successful. Fortunately, there are foundations and other grantmakers for every size organization and every conceivable cause. Private foundations in the United States alone give away as much as $43 billion annually.

In this book, I cover everything you need to know to write a successful grant proposal. You’ll learn how to research prospects, cultivate relationships within and outside your charity, develop a complete proposal in several common formats, create a budget that also tells a story, and end up with a proposal that will stand out from a foundation’s slush pile.