[AI-assisted for speed]
Most people write proposals too soon.
They try to write before the work is shaped—before there’s any shared sense of what it is, who it’s for, or how it will unfold. They rush toward a finished document instead of letting the structure emerge through conversation. They treat the proposal as the starting point, when in fact it should be the final layer—built on a foundation of co-authorship, sequencing, and shared clarity.
This series is about how proposals actually happen. It’s not about formatting. It’s about alignment, architecture, and timing. About how relationships produce structure, how strategy becomes legible, and how the document reflects—not defines—the work.
Read them in order. Start at the top. Each post builds on the last, taking you from early alignment to internal structure to final form.
1. From Sketch to Proposal: How and When Proposals Actually Begin
Proposals don’t begin as documents. They begin as sketches. Or concept notes. Or messy bullets in a shared doc. This post breaks down when the real work starts, how to recognize shaping language, and how to build a proposal through collaboration—not composition.
2. The 1-2-3 Structure: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How to Use It
Every strong proposal is built on a clear, repeatable, 3-part strategic spine. This post shows how to create one. It includes criteria, examples, and diagnostics—and explains why the 1-2-3 structure repeats across the proposal: in the narrative, the budget, the bios, and beyond.
3. How to Write a Strong Proposal
This is the blueprint. Once the strategy is clear and the 1-2-3 is locked, this post walks through the structure of the full proposal—section by section. It covers tone, logic, rhythm, and layout. And it shows how to make the document feel inevitable.
Where Does the Proposal Really Begin?
The posts above focus on the structure of the proposal. But if you want to understand how a proposal becomes possible in the first place—how the relationship is built, how shaping language emerges, and how alignment gets earned long before anything is written—start here: The Fundraising Conversation: A Field Manual
Together, these posts form a complete arc—from alignment to strategy to structure. A map for how proposals actually emerge.
Geoffrey MacDougall 