I feel obliged to write about this request.

I am a grant writer, on staff at Newark Public Library.  Before I was offered a staff position, I did some freelance grant writing for the Library and for other cultural organizations, as part of a consulting practice I had.

If you want to hire someone to do some work for your library, such as giving a public program, would you tell the speaker that their fee is based on attendance at the program?  No, of course you wouldn’t.

When you hire a grant writer to prepare a proposal, especially a complex proposal such as a federal grant proposal, you are hiring that person to perform a job.  Whether or not your proposal is funded, that person did the job.

Meet with one or more prospective grant writers.  Ask what fees they charge, and what schedule they would set for the project.  Ask for samples of funded proposals.  Do your due diligence and read what they give you.  When you make your decision, promptly notify all of the writers you have interviewed. 

Negotiate the fee you will pay the consultant, and prepare a written letter of agreement with a schedule and deliverables (what you will provide to enable the consultant to do the best job possible, and when you expect drafts for review and when the final proposal will be submitted).  When the proposal is submitted, your consultant will submit an invoice, and you should pay it as promptly as you would pay any other vendor.

Pat McDermott

Development Officer

Newark Public Library

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