Categories
All Arts Funding Grants Writing

Grant writing?!!

Does grant writing make your head hurt, your eye twitch and your blood run cold?

You’re not alone.

However, I’ve had some —

  • luck?
  • fortune?
  • a really good hair day?
  • great results to hard work?
  • excellent barometric pressure?
  • all of the above?

— I’d say a combination of the above except for the good hair day as I will often write grants in pyjamas with unbrushed hair (don’t tell the assessors).

I feel the urge to write about this again though as I keep meeting with incredulity when I share my latest grant-writing successes so feels incumbent upon me to keep on sharing the gospel that it’s possible* for them , and for you, too.

* click here

with patience, elbow grease, rewriting AND proof-reading and rinse and repeat.

The dreaded *

* click here too

cut down using SOOOOO MANY WORDS for clarity’s sake and do not REPEAT repeat REPEAT repeat REPEAT and then REPEAT again.

Well, having been an adjudicator, assessor, advisor for MBA (Masters of Business Administration) learners, teacher, instructor and and and…

* click here again

take your time in between reviewing, edit down as much as you can and ENSURE you don’t repeat yourself.

As an assessor, I can’t stand reading the same thing again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again and again…

…see what I did there?

Make it as easy as possible for an assessor to read, understand and say yes.

Try not to make your application a SLOG to get through.

The * work is where most of projects I review separate themselves from the pack — and usually not for the better.

Click the ▶︎ * above if you want to, perhaps, have a better chance on your next grant.

Want to work with me on your grant? Include me as a mentor? Or story analyst? book a time to chat

Categories
All Arts Funding Grants Workshops Writing

Thanks Canada Council!

So, grateful to the Canada Council for the Arts for their generous support!

And, I’m now 3 for 4 (for my last 4 grants submitted).

The average success rate for others for this particular grant category was 22.7%. So, I’m very happy with my 75% success rate for grants I’ve applied for (for myself and for another talented artist).

Actually had to say no to all of the money I was awarded because I got 2 yesses on one project from 2 different funding categories (and you’re not allowed to double-dip or double-fund projects).

I’m scoring over 3 times (~3.3) or 230.4% higher than other grant applicants.

Why do I think this is? (people are asking me a lot).

Want to know more about how I tackle grants?

Writing in for grants is a lot of work and VERY competitive and that is how I think about it going in.

I also have been an adjudicator, mentor, instructor and I see a LOT of the same issues when I’m looking through work and scoring it.

There are some really KEY things most people don’t do which aren’t that difficult and can send your work to the top of the scorecard.

I’ll leave this part here…on a cliffhanger.

If you’re wondering, the funded project I’m currently working on is taking a TV writing course! The funding also includes an artist fee so I get paid while I’m taking the course. Pretty cool, eh?

ok, over + out

Thanks again to the Canada Council for the Arts #BringingTheArtsToLife

Canada Council for the Arts logo

We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.

Nous remercions le Conseil des arts du Canada de son soutien.