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The Freelance Grant Writer Academy is OPEN for the last time in 2026!
You’re ready to quit your toxic job, retire with meaningful, part-time work, or work from home so you can pick up the kids. But how do you replace your paycheck?
Our 12-month group coaching program helps aspiring and seasoned grant writers replace your full-time income, on flexible hours, writing grants from home. You will build grant writing, marketing, and sales skills to find clients and create recurring income on flexible hours.
Get weekly coaching, unlimited grant and business reviews, business and grant training, hundreds of templates,Grant Writer & Consultant Certification, a community, and listed on our Grant Hire for Hire Directory.
Our students have earned over $12.6 million in freelance business revenue. You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Join the Academy for $3,500 or 8 monthly payments of $475. Doors close October 23rd at 11:59 PM Eastern.
A lot of grant writers feel like they are in an impossible situation when asked about their ‘grant writing success rate’. As if the only measurement of your success as a grant writer is based on the grants you have won.
Some places on the internet state that there are ‘good’ percentage win rates for grant writers.
Honestly, ‘grant writer success rates’ are crap.
There are so many reasons outside of a grant writer's control that make ‘grant success rates’ bogus.
Not convinced yet? Let’s flip it on its head.
Holly has only ever written one grant and it gets awarded for $500.
Jonathan wrote 100 grants and got 70 awarded for a total of $13 million.
Holly has a 100% grant success rate vs. Jonathan with a 70% grant success rate.
See how this can be flippant?
What is a better measurement of success are your deliverables.
1. Helping nonprofits develop and build relationships with funders
Because of the work that our students have done with helping their nonprofit clients develop relationships with funders, in 2025 those funders reached directly out to their clients and offered more money or unrestricted funding (without the nonprofit even asking).
One student said “My equity-focused client had a Foundation reach out to them to award an emergency $100K grant with NO action needed to receive it (no application!) just because of the political climate, recognizing that now is the time they need support.”
2. Developing Master Grant Templates that help the organization get clarity
When you are creating Master Grant Templates for your clients, this will help ground a visionary Executive Director and engage the board in more effective ways.
This is VERY valuable, even if you never write grants for the organization, because you help the organization stop mission drifting and burning everyone out.
The board also gets clear on what needs to get done, how much funding is actually needed (instead of ambiguous figures), and they become more involved.
3. Getting things organized to preserve institutional knowledge
What does this mean? Well, you get all the documents organized (or developed) that nonprofits need when submitting grants. I can’t tell you how many nonprofits don’t know where their IRS Tax Exemption letter is, haven’t developed a budget for a program, or have bios for their board members.
Even if they do, chances are it is all on one person’s computer, in folders only that one person can understand, and if that person leaves (or their old computer crashes) everything is lost.
4. Creating a grant prospecting calendar with aligned funders
Having a strategy to submit to 15-20 aligned funders over a period of time vs. 100 applications over a weekend is a surer strategy to get funding.
This is hugely valuable to know how to find funders that align and will be competitive to get funding.
5. Not burning out the entire Executive Director with (last minute) grant writing
Having a grant writer, actually write grants, instead of an Executive Director working an entire weekend is VERY valuable. Even if all of your grants don’t get awarded, you are doing the work so they don’t have to.
When you go into a Sales Call as a grant writer, you need to emphasize the other value of work (not just grant wins).
Remember, you are not just a grant writer. You are a grant strategist. Even if you never win a grant (which many organizations won’t get in their first year), you are building the capacity for grants, and other types of funding, for the nonprofit. They will be READY to receive any type of funding and be able to manage and implement it.
Find out more about the Freelance Grant Writer Academy: https://grantwritingandfunding.com/freelance-grant-writer-academy/
The Freelance Grant Writer Academy is OPEN for the last time in 2026!
You’re ready to quit your toxic job, retire with meaningful, part-time work, or work from home so you can pick up the kids. But how do you replace your paycheck?
Our 12-month group coaching program helps aspiring and seasoned grant writers replace your full-time income, on flexible hours, writing grants from home. You will build grant writing, marketing, and sales skills to find clients and create recurring income on flexible hours.
Get weekly coaching, unlimited grant and business reviews, business and grant training, hundreds of templates,Grant Writer & Consultant Certification, a community, and listed on our Grant Hire for Hire Directory.
Our students have earned over $12.6 million in freelance business revenue. You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Join the Academy for $3,500 or 8 monthly payments of $475. Doors close October 23rd at 11:59 PM Eastern.
A concept that I have been talking about this year is doing the MVP. Now you may have heard the term MVP before, with the acronym standing for Minimum Viable Product.
But my MVP concept stands for Minimum VALUE Product.
You want to deliver something more than just a ‘viable’ product, hence the word ‘VALUE’.
What I have seen after working with more than 300 freelance grant writers in 2025 (and literally more than 1,000 over the last 10 years) is that many of you are all adding fluff to your contracts thinking it will help sell, BUT IT ONLY MAKES YOU OVERPRICED.
This is an important note, especially in 2025 when streamlining is the word for every organization.
In 2025 and 2026, nonprofits and organizations want:
You need to do the work that will DRIVE forward the MOST VALUE for your client, without fluff.
Now, I am not saying to take out what is important, but I am asking you to examine what needs to get done now and to what depth.
Overpitching right now doesn’t make sense. And it probably makes you overpriced.
Cut the work down for you so you can do the MINIMUM VALUE PRODUCT for your clients right now.
To find out more about how hundreds of freelance grant writers determine their Minimum Value Product, join the Freelance Grant Writer Academy: https://grantwritingandfunding.com/freelance-grant-writer-academy/
The Freelance Grant Writer Academy is OPEN for the last time in 2026!
You’re ready to quit your toxic job, retire with meaningful, part-time work, or work from home so you can pick up the kids. But how do you replace your paycheck?
Our 12-month group coaching program helps aspiring and seasoned grant writers replace your full-time income, on flexible hours, writing grants from home. You will build grant writing, marketing, and sales skills to find clients and create recurring income on flexible hours.
Get weekly coaching, unlimited grant and business reviews, business and grant training, hundreds of templates,Grant Writer & Consultant Certification, a community, and listed on our Grant Hire for Hire Directory.
Our students have earned over $12.6 million in freelance business revenue. You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Join the Academy for $3,500 or 8 monthly payments of $475. Doors close October 23rd at 11:59 PM Eastern.
You may be thinking about learning how to write grants and you think it will take too much time OR you may be a freelance grant writer and be stuck in client work.
What I have seen after working with more than 500 freelance grant writers in the last two years (and literally thousands over the last 10 years), is that many of you are overworking yourselves.
Why are you doing this? Well, let me know if this sounds familiar:
Your client also has a tipping point of value from you.
If you deliver the value you both agreed to delivering (i.e. X number of grants in X timeframe for $X) then they should be happy.
But…
You think this overworking makes them value you, but here’s what happens:
Then this results:
Stay within the bounds of your contract. Put together a scope of work that will get them results AND STAY WITHIN IT.
They agreed to the price and deliverables. You agreed to doing them.
This is GOLDEN and it’s why most people join the Academy who have existing freelance grant writing businesses.
You can run a streamlined and neutral business that delivers value and makes your clients happy.
You can feel and BE appreciated for your scope of work.
Find out more about the Freelance Grant Writer Academy: https://grantwritingandfunding.com/freelance-grant-writer-academy/
The Freelance Grant Writer Academy is OPEN for the last time in 2026!
You’re ready to quit your toxic job, retire with meaningful, part-time work, or work from home so you can pick up the kids. But how do you replace your paycheck?
Our 12-month group coaching program helps aspiring and seasoned grant writers replace your full-time income, on flexible hours, writing grants from home. You will build grant writing, marketing, and sales skills to find clients and create recurring income on flexible hours.
Get weekly coaching, unlimited grant and business reviews, business and grant training, hundreds of templates,Grant Writer & Consultant Certification, a community, and listed on our Grant Hire for Hire Directory.
Our students have earned over $12.6 million in freelance business revenue. You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Join the Academy for $3,500 or 8 monthly payments of $475. Doors close October 23rd at 11:59 PM Eastern.
You don’t just write grants. You are a grant strategist.
You just aren’t positioning yourself as one.
We are seeing that Academy students who are leaning into positioning themselves as a Grant Strategist vs. Grant Writer are doing BETTER this year in booking out their businesses.
What a Grant Strategist Does in 2025-2026
If you already are a grant writer, you have already done the above. You just haven’t marketed yourself with the above OR given yourself the permission to take a beat from the writing and lean into the above more (even though you know it’s vital).
Here’s your permission.
Organizations need to focus on running their nonprofits/organizations. They need you to pay attention to the grant funding side.
AND Nonprofits and organizations are PAYING grant writers to be grant strategists in 2025 and for the foreseeable future.
We got the receipts.
It’s no surprise that overall our students (like any sizable sample size of grant writers in 2025) raised LESS grant money as compared to 2024 (obvi, with all the grant freezes, etc.).
That’s a huge difference and it makes sense with all the pauses at the beginning of the year. This is NO surprise as this hit across the sector. While some grant writers saw no impact, many federal grant writers got hit at the beginning of the year.
AND IT’S STILL A LOT OF MONEY THAT WE WERE ABLE TO WIN!
Literally millions of dollars. 🤯
BUT what’s super interesting here is the money student MADE in their freelance grant writing businesses, i.e. clients paid them:
This is MIND BLOWING as it proves that dollar signs are NOT the only reason organizations are hiring you!
We are ON TRACK for students to MAKE MORE MONEY in their businesses in 2025 vs. 2024!
Organizations need your mind as a grant strategist in 2025, and for the rest of time.
Find out more about the Freelance Grant Writer Academy: https://grantwritingandfunding.com/academy
The Freelance Grant Writer Academy is OPEN for the last time in 2026!
You’re ready to quit your toxic job, retire with meaningful, part-time work, or work from home so you can pick up the kids. But how do you replace your paycheck?
Our 12-month group coaching program helps aspiring and seasoned grant writers replace your full-time income, on flexible hours, writing grants from home. You will build grant writing, marketing, and sales skills to find clients and create recurring income on flexible hours.
Get weekly coaching, unlimited grant and business reviews, business and grant training, hundreds of templates,Grant Writer & Consultant Certification, a community, and listed on our Grant Hire for Hire Directory.
Our students have earned over $12.6 million in freelance business revenue. You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Join the Academy for $3,500 or 8 monthly payments of $475. Doors close October 23rd at 11:59 PM Eastern.
Changemakers in the Academy have made $3,470,242 (and growing every day) in their grant writing businesses so far in 2025. 🔥
They’ve also secured more than $48 million in funding for their clients. 🤑
How are they doing it?
They are utilizing our Grant and Funding frameworks built on 20+ years of experience.
One mantra that I have always had is, “Don’t be 100% reliant on grant funding.”
I might be known as the grant writing girlie, but I’ve actually helped organizations get a lot of diverse funding.
And I’m doing that today, and teaching others how to do it.
With the number of grants going out over the last four years, it was easy for us grant writers to lean into just writing grants.
But it hasn’t always been like that. I’ve helped nonprofits with:
We have added these trainings into the Academy this year.
And students have diversified their services for nonprofit clients.
They aren’t just writing grants. They are doing other things.
These are called Funding Assets.
When you take your Master Grant Application and repurpose it into a Corporate Solicitation Letter, this is now a Funding Asset.
So for many Academy members, they are getting more clients this year because they take our Funding Asset training (and templates and resources) and then integrate them into their services.
Starting in November, we have our 6-Week Live Master Grant Template training where Academy members will learn how to create a Master Grant Template and how to repurpose it into other funding assets for their clients.
For more about the Freelance Grant Writer Academy, go to: https://grantwritingandfunding.com/academy
The Freelance Grant Writer Academy is OPEN for the last time in 2026!
You’re ready to quit your toxic job, retire with meaningful, part-time work, or work from home so you can pick up the kids. But how do you replace your paycheck?
Our 12-month group coaching program helps aspiring and seasoned grant writers replace your full-time income, on flexible hours, writing grants from home. You will build grant writing, marketing, and sales skills to find clients and create recurring income on flexible hours.
Get weekly coaching, unlimited grant and business reviews, business and grant training, hundreds of templates,Grant Writer & Consultant Certification, a community, and listed on our Grant Hire for Hire Directory.
Our students have earned over $12.6 million in freelance business revenue. You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Join the Academy for $3,500 or 8 monthly payments of $475. Doors close October 23rd at 11:59 PM Eastern.
Join Holly to hear how you can earn an extra $10,000 in 90 days writing grants from home. She will give you case studies on what freelance grant writer students (inside the Academy and Mentorship) are doing to secure grants and clients in 2025, why nonprofits have money in 2025 to hire you as a freelance grant writer, and 3 steps to make extra money writing grants (even if you are new to grants).
Tune in today!
The Freelance Grant Writer Academy is OPEN for the last time in 2026!
You’re ready to quit your toxic job, retire with meaningful, part-time work, or work from home so you can pick up the kids. But how do you replace your paycheck?
Our 12-month group coaching program helps aspiring and seasoned grant writers replace your full-time income, on flexible hours, writing grants from home. You will build grant writing, marketing, and sales skills to find clients and create recurring income on flexible hours.
Get weekly coaching, unlimited grant and business reviews, business and grant training, hundreds of templates,Grant Writer & Consultant Certification, a community, and listed on our Grant Hire for Hire Directory.
Our students have earned over $12.6 million in freelance business revenue. You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Join the Academy for $3,500 or 8 monthly payments of $475. Doors close October 23rd at 11:59 PM Eastern.
Today on Grant Writing & Funding, Holly Rustick sits down with Dr. Annise Mabry bestselling author, and multi-stream revenue builder. We dive into how she’s secured $2.7M+ in grants while in the Academy, landed multi-million-dollar rural infrastructure wins, balanced a nonprofit with a grant services business, priced her services with confidence.
Tune in today to listen to this podcast.
To learn more about the podcast episodes go to https://grantwritingandfunding.com/grant-writing-podcast/
"Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts
Favor, please?
If you love this podcast, would you please do me a favor and leave a review on iTunes or your podcast listener?
This helps others find the podcast and I read each and every review!
“Every time I listen to Holly’s show, I learn something” <– If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show!
Thanks for listening!
Warmly,
Holly Rustick
Coaches new and experienced grant writers to earn high 5-6 figure incomes writing grants from home!
Get Freelance Grant Writing Spicy Tips when you Join the weekly newsletter series “Write Grants. Get Paid” https://grantwritingandfunding.com/
Freelance Grant Writer Academy: Replace your Full-Time Income Writing Grants Part-Time from Home.
https://grantwritingandfunding.com/freelance-grant-writer-academy/
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This podcast episode was lovingly sponsored by GEMS!
This podcast episode is lovingly sponsored by Grant Easy Management Software (GEMS). Break Up with Your Spreadsheet – Get GEMS Grant Easy Management Software and NEVER MISS A DEADLINE AGAIN! Book YOUR FREE demo now! Click here: https://www.grantwritingandfunding.com/gems
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The Freelance Grant Writer Academy is OPEN for the last time in 2026!
You’re ready to quit your toxic job, retire with meaningful, part-time work, or work from home so you can pick up the kids. But how do you replace your paycheck?
Our 12-month group coaching program helps aspiring and seasoned grant writers replace your full-time income, on flexible hours, writing grants from home. You will build grant writing, marketing, and sales skills to find clients and create recurring income on flexible hours.
Get weekly coaching, unlimited grant and business reviews, business and grant training, hundreds of templates,Grant Writer & Consultant Certification, a community, and listed on our Grant Hire for Hire Directory.
Our students have earned over $12.6 million in freelance business revenue. You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Join the Academy for $3,500 or 8 monthly payments of $475. Doors close October 23rd at 11:59 PM Eastern.
In this episode, Holly Rustick dives into a nuanced topic that many freelance grant writers grapple with: Should you, as a freelancer, submit grants directly on behalf of your clients, or should your clients always be the ones submitting? Holly unpacks the different approaches, shares best practices, and explores the implications for liability, client capacity-building, and business strategy.
Tune in today to listen to this podcast.
To learn more about the podcast episodes go to https://grantwritingandfunding.com/grant-writing-podcast/
"Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts
Favor, please?
If you love this podcast, would you please do me a favor and leave a review on iTunes or your podcast listener?
This helps others find the podcast and I read each and every review!
“Every time I listen to Holly’s show, I learn something” <– If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show!
Thanks for listening!
Warmly,
Holly Rustick
Coaches new and experienced grant writers to earn high 5-6 figure incomes writing grants from home!
Get Freelance Grant Writing Spicy Tips when you Join the weekly newsletter series “Write Grants. Get Paid” https://grantwritingandfunding.com/
Freelance Grant Writer Academy: Replace your Full-Time Income Writing Grants Part-Time from Home.
https://grantwritingandfunding.com/freelance-grant-writer-academy/
———————————————————————————
This podcast episode was lovingly sponsored by GEMS!
This podcast episode is lovingly sponsored by Grant Easy Management Software (GEMS). Break Up with Your Spreadsheet – Get GEMS Grant Easy Management Software and NEVER MISS A DEADLINE AGAIN! Book YOUR FREE demo now! Click here: https://www.grantwritingandfunding.com/gems
———————————————————————————
The Freelance Grant Writer Academy is OPEN for the last time in 2026!
You’re ready to quit your toxic job, retire with meaningful, part-time work, or work from home so you can pick up the kids. But how do you replace your paycheck?
Our 12-month group coaching program helps aspiring and seasoned grant writers replace your full-time income, on flexible hours, writing grants from home. You will build grant writing, marketing, and sales skills to find clients and create recurring income on flexible hours.
Get weekly coaching, unlimited grant and business reviews, business and grant training, hundreds of templates,Grant Writer & Consultant Certification, a community, and listed on our Grant Hire for Hire Directory.
Our students have earned over $12.6 million in freelance business revenue. You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Join the Academy for $3,500 or 8 monthly payments of $475. Doors close October 23rd at 11:59 PM Eastern.
In this heartfelt episode, Holly dives deep into the topic every grant writer faces but rarely wants to talk about—grant rejections. She reminds us that denials are a natural (and frequent!) part of the grant writing world, often for reasons outside your control, like shifting funder priorities or geographic focus. Holly shares her own experiences, how even seasoned grant writers get rejected, and why your worth is not tied to every grant outcome.
You’ll also get practical tips on navigating those tough feelings, setting client expectations, and why your work is valuable—even when a grant isn't awarded. Holly covers why it’s essential to learn from feedback (if you get it), how to set boundaries and timelines with clients, and the importance of persistence in the face of nos.
There’s also an important discussion on the role of AI in grant writing and why learning the craft remains vital, even with new tech tools on the scene.
Tune in today to listen to this podcast.
To learn more about the podcast episodes go to https://grantwritingandfunding.com/grant-writing-podcast/
"Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts
Favor, please?
If you love this podcast, would you please do me a favor and leave a review on iTunes or your podcast listener?
This helps others find the podcast and I read each and every review!
“Every time I listen to Holly’s show, I learn something” <– If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show!
Thanks for listening!
Warmly,
Holly Rustick
Coaches new and experienced grant writers to earn high 5-6 figure incomes writing grants from home!
Get Freelance Grant Writing Spicy Tips when you Join the weekly newsletter series “Write Grants. Get Paid” https://grantwritingandfunding.com/
Freelance Grant Writer Academy: Replace your Full-Time Income Writing Grants Part-Time from Home.
https://grantwritingandfunding.com/freelance-grant-writer-academy/
———————————————————————————
This podcast episode was lovingly sponsored by GEMS!
This podcast episode is lovingly sponsored by Grant Easy Management Software (GEMS). Break Up with Your Spreadsheet – Get GEMS Grant Easy Management Software and NEVER MISS A DEADLINE AGAIN! Book YOUR FREE demo now! Click here: https://www.grantwritingandfunding.com/gems
———————————————————————————
The Freelance Grant Writer Academy is OPEN for the last time in 2026!
You’re ready to quit your toxic job, retire with meaningful, part-time work, or work from home so you can pick up the kids. But how do you replace your paycheck?
Our 12-month group coaching program helps aspiring and seasoned grant writers replace your full-time income, on flexible hours, writing grants from home. You will build grant writing, marketing, and sales skills to find clients and create recurring income on flexible hours.
Get weekly coaching, unlimited grant and business reviews, business and grant training, hundreds of templates,Grant Writer & Consultant Certification, a community, and listed on our Grant Hire for Hire Directory.
Our students have earned over $12.6 million in freelance business revenue. You don’t have to figure this out alone.
Join the Academy for $3,500 or 8 monthly payments of $475. Doors close October 23rd at 11:59 PM Eastern.
We dive into the essentials of grant prospecting, covering both free and paid tools. Learn how to find funders, understand RFPs, and utilize top software like Grants.gov, Instrumental, and Foundation Directory Online to secure grants for your organization. Whether you're a seasoned grant writer or a newbie nonprofit, discover insights and strategies to enhance your grant-seeking process.
Tune in today to listen to this podcast.
To learn more about the podcast episodes go to https://grantwritingandfunding.com/grant-writing-podcast/
"Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts
Favor, please?
If you love this podcast, would you please do me a favor and leave a review on iTunes or your podcast listener?
This helps others find the podcast and I read each and every review!
“Every time I listen to Holly’s show, I learn something” <– If that sounds like you, please consider rating and reviewing my show!
Thanks for listening!
Warmly,
Holly Rustick
Coaches new and experienced grant writers to earn high 5-6 figure incomes writing grants from home!
Get Freelance Grant Writing Spicy Tips when you Join the weekly newsletter series “Write Grants. Get Paid” https://grantwritingandfunding.com/
Freelance Grant Writer Academy: Replace your Full-Time Income Writing Grants Part-Time from Home.
https://grantwritingandfunding.com/freelance-grant-writer-academy/
———————————————————————————
This podcast episode was lovingly sponsored by GEMS!
This podcast episode is lovingly sponsored by Grant Easy Management Software (GEMS). Break Up with Your Spreadsheet – Get GEMS Grant Easy Management Software and NEVER MISS A DEADLINE AGAIN! Book YOUR FREE demo now! Click here: https://www.grantwritingandfunding.com/gems
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