Funding Transformation: Grant Writing for Storytellers, Writers, Artists, Educators, & Activists // with Diane Silver

The process of seeking a grant can seem daunting, but it doesn't have to be. In this class, poet and grant-writer Diane Silver provides an insider's understanding of the grant process, gives you the resources you need to identify the perfect grant to target, and supplies feedback on your application draft. The primary purpose of this six-week class is to enable you to produce a finished or nearly finished grant application.

NOTE: This is a 6-week online class, beginning Wednesday, February 21, and ending Tuesday, April 3. Please ignore the set times listed in our Facebook posting for this class — weekly modules are engaged with your own time (FB just requires a time for events).

Week by Week

Week One: Who, How and Where

We'll orient ourselves to the process of grant writing. Each participant will choose a funder to target.

Week Two: Tips, Tricks, Boilerplates and Artist's Statements

We'll learn about boilerplate language, artist's statements, learn a few tips and tricks, and devise a practical plan for your work on your grant proposal.

Week Three: Of Budgets and Beginnings

We'll learn how easy it is to create a budget for a grant, and determine the most effective arguments that will enable you to win a grant.

Week Four: Muddling Through

With much help from your teacher and the other participants, you will dive deep into writing your proposal.

Week Five: Conquering the First Draft

More writing will be completed and even more support will come your way from the entire class. We will seek that feeling of triumph that comes from conquering a first draft.

Week Six: Charting Your Future

In the final week, we will complete our grant proposals and participants will determine their next steps.

Who Should Take This Class

This course is for all creative artists, educators and activists seeking grant funding to support their work. If you tried to win a grant and failed, never tried at all, or find yourself procrastinating on your next grant application, this class is for you. If you know what grant you want to target, this class will provide you with the support and guidance you need to polish and complete your application. If you have no clue where to start, this class will help you find resources, understand the process, and will provide feedback and support to help you complete your application.

Format

This is an online class that uses Moodle's educational software. There is a suggested schedule, but all of the material will be available to participants on the first day of class. Participants should expect to spend 3–5 hours per week perusing resources and readings, doing research on funding sources, working on their own grant proposal, and providing feedback to the other participants in the class. From our interactions, we sustain a welcoming and inspiring community together.

About the Teacher

A poet, journalist, and political activist, Diane Silver often pays her mortgage by working as a grant-writer and in fundraising. In her career, Diane has helped two universities raise hundreds of millions of dollars and written proposals that have won funding for a variety of clients. 

Her online course, Grant Writing and Fundraising Communications, and her fundraising writing win high praise. 

"Diane Silver is the most talented development writer I've known in more than 20 years of work," says Geni Holmes Greiner, executive director of university events for Wake Forest University.

Diane's most recent creative work is a four-volume series of poetry called Your Daily Shot of Hope. The first two volumes, Meditations for an Age of Despair and Meditations on Awakening, were published in 2017. Forthcoming are Meditations on Transformation and Meditations on Joy.