What makes a well-written grant proposal? After two decades of writing, revising, and reviewing grant proposals, I recently discovered the blog posts of @Andrew Derrington, who like no one else captures the most crucial points. A selection.
The perfect introduction. State exactly (1) what you will do, (2) why it is important, (3) your research aims, (4) your objectives, and (5) what you will do with the results. Do this in key sentences, repeat them exactly again and again. parkerderrington.com/grant-writing-…
Even more detailed: The PIPPIN sentences, describing Promise, Importance, Problem, Project, Implementation, and Next in 10 key sentences: parkerderrington.com/key-sentences-…
How to write your grant application for different reader groups. Referees, presenting members, and the rest of the committee - all have different roles in the decision and have different needs. parkerderrington.com/target_reader/
Use simple sentences for your grant application. And short paragraphs. Have them connect such that you generate a flow: parkerderrington.com/seven-deadly-s…
When presenting your application (say, for an ERC interview), state the message, break it down into components, explain the components, and resynthesize the original message in the close. And practice! parkerderrington.com/erc-grant-inte…
Software researcher at @CISPA. Testing, debugging, analyzing, and protecting software for a better world. Also on Mastodon as @AndreasZeller@mastodon.social.