Quick Tips
Why AI Grant Writing Tools Fall Short, and What Builds Real Capacity Instead
Every few months, a new tool promises to write your grants for you. Plug in your organization, answer a few prompts, and out comes a proposal. For a nonprofit leader trying to expand a grants portfolio with a lean team, that promise lands somewhere between exciting and too good to be true.
It is usually the second one. The tools are getting better, and some of them are genuinely useful for a first draft. Here’s the problem with these tools: when you try to generalize something for everyone (selling a product to 1000s of nonprofits), the specifics get lost. And in grant writing, the specifics are the entire point.
Why Generic AI Grant Writing Tools Lose What Matters
A general-purpose AI grant tool is built to serve thousands of organizations at once. To do that, it has to flatten the way that it writes grants. When a tool is designed to work for everyone, it cannot hold the things that make your application yours. You get language that is technically competent and fairly interchangeable. A reviewer reading a hundred applications can feel that flatness immediately.
The deeper issue is what happens when the output is wrong. With a closed tool where you can’t rewrite the skills/code, you are stuck. You can regenerate; you can tweak your inputs, but you cannot reach into the system and fix what is actually broken because you did not build it and you do not understand how it works.
The Case for Training Your Team Instead
There is another path: when you train the experts in your organization to use AI effectively, they can fix the problems themselves.
I have been saying this for a long time (in AI years…so like at least 18 months…ha!): the real promise of AI is that you get to solve YOUR problems. The accessibility of the tech is the benefit.
What Your First Federal Grant Teaches You About Pricing (And What to Fix Before the Next One)
The NOFO said 60 hours. The grant took 250.
That gap between what the federal government estimates and what the work actually requires is where a lot of grant professionals get crushed on their first pass at a federal application.
You deliver. You submit. You collapse. And somewhere in the middle of all that, you also wrote the client a 20-page business plan that wasn't in your contract, chased down financial data until Saturday night before a Tuesday deadline, and rewrote the same narrative three times because the NOFO changed twice.
If any of that sounds familiar, you are not alone. This literally happened with a Federal Grants Accelerator participant. And they (and you) are not bad at your job.
What you are missing is the systems that protect you, the pricing formula, the contract language, and the client expectations that experienced federal grant writers build over years of exactly this kind of expensive lesson.
Here's what those systems look like in practice.
Before You Write Another Prompt, Build “Rooms” in the “House”
Most grant writers discover AI through prompting.
They type a careful instruction — "You are an experienced grant writer with 20 years of experience in foundation grants. Write a compelling needs statement for a literacy program targeting elementary school students in low-income communities." They get something back. It's pretty good. They edit it. They move on. They call this an AI workflow.
It isn't. Or rather, it's the beginning of one, but if you stop there, you’ll remain frustrated with AI being over hyped.
The barrier to consistent, high-quality AI output in grant writing isn't prompting skill. It's context and folder usage. Once you employ these approaches, your experience of AI will change rapidly.
Shadow Work in Grants
Shadow work is the hidden labor behind every successful grant—from rebuilding budgets to chasing internal data. New research shows it’s costing organizations an average of $53,700 a year and forcing many to walk away from major funding opportunities. This post explores what’s really happening behind the scenes and why it’s time to rethink how grant work is supported.
Three Common Language Traps in Grant Narratives
Part II of our series “The Power and Politics of Language in Grant Narratives” explores three common language traps in grant narratives and offers practical strategies to write more accurate, respectful, and grounded needs statements. It challenges grant writers to move beyond deficit-based and exaggerated language, and instead center community agency, context, and truth in their proposals.
Grant Writing. It’s Political. And Your Needs Statement Proves It.
Grant writing isn’t neutral. The language used in needs statements and project justifications shapes how communities are perceived—and funded. This blog explores how to write compelling narratives that tell the truth without reinforcing harmful deficit-based framing.
We Confused Scaling a Program With Delivering It at Scale
Many nonprofits have been told for years that if a program works, it should scale. But we’ve blurred an important distinction: scaling a program is not the same thing as delivering it at scale. The result is that many nonprofits feel trapped between staying small and under-serving, or growing until something breaks.
Preparing Now for the Earmark Window Ahead
Many organizations wrote off earmarks in 2025. That was a mistake. While headlines focused on partisan narratives, three appropriations minibus bills quietly moved through Congress — and they included Congressionally Directed Spending. Organizations that stayed engaged with their representatives and senators secured millions. Those who assumed earmarks were dead stopped paying attention and missed the window.
Positioning Yourself for Federal Grants Using Your Existing Strengths
Federal grants are often seen as too big, too complex, or out of reach. In reality, readiness has less to do with size and more to do with clarity, consistency, and strong systems. Federal readiness is not about becoming something different. It is about making your work structured, measurable, and aligned with long-term growth.
Priority Trends Under this Administration
After reviewing several federal funding opportunities released earlier this year, one thing is clear: the same types of priorities keep reappearing, shaping eligibility, scoring, selection decisions, and even post-award requirements. Administration priorities are showing up as priority points, eligibility gates, selection discretion, and post-award compliance requirements.
You’re Not Too Small. You’re Just Underestimated.
Some folks look at your org and see “small.” We see something else: underestimated. In this blog, we bust a few myths, share insight on a winning approach, and provide a four-step playbook for small organizations that want to compete for federal dollars.
The Federal Government has Reopened. Now What?
If it felt like the entire nonprofit sector collectively held its breath for the last several weeks… you’re not wrong. The federal government has officially reopened. If you are excited to apply and think things are returning to “normal” quickly, I’ll gently invite you to take a big sip of water and temper those expectations. Let’s break down what to expect.
What to Do When You’re Told “You’re Not a Fit”
If you are in federal grants long enough, you will hear it: “You’re not a fit.” In this blog, we name what “no” really means (and doesn’t), unpack a practical debrief process you can use immediately, and offer insight for building a resilient posture for the long game of federal funding. Most importantly, I’ll invite you to share your story, because our field is stronger when we compare notes.
Equitable Grantmaking: How Federal Grants Can Advance (or Hinder) Equity
Let’s not sugarcoat it. Equity in federal grantmaking is under siege. Language about underserved and marginalized communities is disappearing from federal RFPs, data requirements are softening, and equity-centered technical assistance is being cut. The result: well-resourced institutions are advantaged while rural, Black, Indigenous, immigrant, and other underfunded communities are pushed back to the margins.
From Heart to Head: Preparing Your Narrative for Federal Grants
Transitioning from foundation grants to federal grant writing requires more than minor adjustments—it demands a fundamental mindset shift. While foundation proposals often lean on compelling stories and flexible formats, federal grants require structured, evidence-based narratives rooted in data, measurable objectives, and strict compliance with RFP guidelines. This blog outlines key differences in tone, structure, and expectations, and offers practical exercises to help writers adapt—from reframing emotional appeals with data, to aligning narratives with federal evaluation criteria. Whether or not you pursue federal funding, these skills will elevate the rigor and credibility of all your grant proposals.
Seven Reasons Why AI Won’t Replace Grant Writers
I believe that grant writing is more than a deliverable. While AI may support parts of the process, it will never understand the call to serve, to advocate, and to lead through language.
Federal grants are not won by shortcuts or chance. They are won through clarity, alignment, storytelling, and trust. These are all things that begin and end with people. So if you’re wondering whether the rise of AI means the fall of professional grant writers, rest easy.
As long as grants are written for humans, by humans, the craft will remain in human hands.
What My Cycle Taught Me About Writing Better Grants
Let’s talk about something that doesn’t usually come up in grant writing circles: menstrual cycles. For years, I’ve tracked it for the usual reasons—physical health, mood, energy. But lately, I’ve noticed something else: it’s a powerful creative tool.
The Elephant in the Room: Are Federal Grants Really Coming Back?
Federal grants are back—but with strings attached.
While billions in funding are available through 2025, new compliance rules, tighter oversight, and political shifts are changing the game. For nonprofits—especially those serving underresourced communities—it's a moment of both opportunity and risk. Learn how to navigate this new landscape.
Threads: The Key to Successful Grant Writing
Grant writing isn’t just about crafting compelling answers to specific prompts – it’s about making sure that every piece of the puzzle fits together. At the core of successful grant applications are threads: the essential connections between the need, the intervention, and the impact. Without strong threads, federal grant proposals can become disconnected, unfocused, and ultimately unsuccessful.