Funding application hacks
Both academic & creative funding applications can be long & take a very long time! Here’s a look at my workflow & general mindset/approach for creative funding in order of how do them to speed things up & make sure the application is consistent from start to finish:
In-kind: I keep a record of in-kind activity from the get-go & cost it either at MU rate, or the rate of the person/activity/organisation as I go along. This gives me a figure to enter into applications or use as supporting evidence that the project exists.
Activity: From the beginning (as in, from the very first idea about it) I also keep a log of everything I do to do with the project, including my writing & research time/costs & travel to do it.
Things to remember: Because the focus of my work is usually the music & research, I keep a list of things I need to remember to include & make, such as photos, video, & design costs at each stage of the project, promotional & outreach activities, an administrator, bookkeeper/treasurer, etc. which I can forget about in concentrating on the music.
Needs: Next, I list the project’s needs & cost each one, again at MU or going rates. This is the basis of the budget.
Action points: … and then next to each of those what needs actioning about/for them. This is the basis of what the budget is for, which ( (you!) will also be writing about later.
Outcomes: I then make an enormous mind-map of all the (positive) outcomes I can conceive this project will create at as many levels as possible, artistically, personally, professionally, financially, sector-wise, business-wise, etc.
Application form: Now I look at the application form & code each thing they’re asking me for, e.g. ‘Developing audiences’ gets coded with the letter ‘A’, ‘Developing the organisation’ gets an ‘O’, etc.
Labelling: I now go through each thing on each list and give it one of the letter codes. When I start writing about this in the application I can now quickly refer to each point in the blurbs I have to write.
Budget: This is actually the first thing I input into the form, remembering to add a 10% contingency last.
Blurbs: For each heading I look at which of the codes I need to talk about &… just write, because the descriptions are already in my lists.
Summary: Although it’s tempting to do this first, I tend to do the smaller things like this last when I’ve a better overview of the project.
Evidence/attachments: I attach anything I can that proves the biggest and/or most unbelievable aspects of the project or situation.
I’ve got this down to four pages of A4 for five-figure projects, but I’d be very interested to hear if anyone else has anything that might quicken the process even further, (outside of Chat GPT for the blurbs :D I was thinking more of processes!)