This is my Mama Mia collage I created to help me focus on a recent grant I wrote for a local non-profit.A big field now is grant writing. This would be another good avenue if you want to enter the technical writing field. Non-profit companies, educational institutions, and healthcare companies often have staff positions. In the eight years since I moved up to this rural area in Western Wisconsin, I've seen job openings for Grant Writers at the Chippewa Valley Technical College, West CAP, Mayo Health Systems, and UW-Stout. I haven't been looking for jobs, so I suspect if I've noticed that many without reading the ads or actively working my networks, then there are probably quite a few out there, especially in more urban parts of the country.
Again, the Writer’s Conundrum enters into this equation. Even if you are an experienced technical writer, you likely will need some credentials in grant writing on your resume. The conundrum is how to get credentials if you can’t get hired? One way to do this is to do some volunteer (that means unpaid) grant writing. Think of it as a form of apprenticeship.
Even though I have a long list of credentials on my resume for all types of technical writing, including grant writing, I still do regular volunteer grant writing as a way of helping the communities where I live. For example, I write an annual application on behalf of the Menomonie Public Library for a grant from the Wisconsin Center for the Book as part of their “Wisconsin Authors & Illustrators Speak” program. This is the third year in a row that I’ve written the grant, and the third year in a row the library has received funds. Recently, I wrote a grant application for a local non-profit. We’re competing for a national foundation’s single award, and will find out about the money at the end of the year. Including a meeting, a conference, and writing, it took me about four hours.
If you are associated with a group that needs grant money, such as a food pantry, church, performing arts organization, or just about anything else that serves a community, chances are there are grants out there at the local, county, state, and federal level. If your group serves children or a multicultural population, the number of grants available increases tenfold. The group may already know of grants and you may as well be the one to write them, whether as a volunteer or paid writer. Other places to look are the government portal web site at http://usa.gov/ which not only provides links to federal grants, but if you do some navigation, you can reach state and local sites through usa.gov as well as grants based on your specific topic (e.g., grants for education, art, music, etc.). And hey, you may even uncover a grant for writers!
Again, the Writer’s Conundrum enters into this equation. Even if you are an experienced technical writer, you likely will need some credentials in grant writing on your resume. The conundrum is how to get credentials if you can’t get hired? One way to do this is to do some volunteer (that means unpaid) grant writing. Think of it as a form of apprenticeship.
Even though I have a long list of credentials on my resume for all types of technical writing, including grant writing, I still do regular volunteer grant writing as a way of helping the communities where I live. For example, I write an annual application on behalf of the Menomonie Public Library for a grant from the Wisconsin Center for the Book as part of their “Wisconsin Authors & Illustrators Speak” program. This is the third year in a row that I’ve written the grant, and the third year in a row the library has received funds. Recently, I wrote a grant application for a local non-profit. We’re competing for a national foundation’s single award, and will find out about the money at the end of the year. Including a meeting, a conference, and writing, it took me about four hours.
If you are associated with a group that needs grant money, such as a food pantry, church, performing arts organization, or just about anything else that serves a community, chances are there are grants out there at the local, county, state, and federal level. If your group serves children or a multicultural population, the number of grants available increases tenfold. The group may already know of grants and you may as well be the one to write them, whether as a volunteer or paid writer. Other places to look are the government portal web site at http://usa.gov/ which not only provides links to federal grants, but if you do some navigation, you can reach state and local sites through usa.gov as well as grants based on your specific topic (e.g., grants for education, art, music, etc.). And hey, you may even uncover a grant for writers!
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