Letter of Inquiry Feedback
A letter of inquiry has a short job. In a page or two, it has to tell a program officer what problem you are addressing, what you will do about it, why your work belongs with this funder, and what you are asking for. When any one of those four is vague or buried, the reader may stop before the idea gets a fair look.
Help Me Bro gives written feedback on a letter of inquiry that you have already written. I read it the way a busy program officer would, then leave comments and tracked changes in your file showing where the letter is clear, where it wanders and where it asks the reader to guess.
What I look at in your letter
Feedback follows the work a letter of inquiry has to do:
- The need. Is the problem stated early, in plain terms, with enough context for a reader who does not know your field or your community?
- The program. Can a reader tell what you will actually do, for whom and over what period, without wading through background first?
- The fit. Does the letter connect your work to what this funder says it cares about, or does it read like a letter that could go to anyone?
- The ask. Is the request stated clearly, and does it match the scope of the program you described?
- Brevity. Where does a sentence repeat another, hedge too much, or carry detail that belongs in a full proposal instead?
- Consistency. Do the goals, activities and the amount or scope you request line up from the opening paragraph to the closing one?
Following the funder’s instructions
Funders differ a great deal in how long a letter of inquiry may be, what it should contain and how it must be formatted. I do not supply numbers for any particular funder, and you should not rely on anyone else’s summary of them. Check the funder’s own guidelines, and keep them open while you revise.
What I can do is read your letter against the instructions you give me. If you send the funder’s call or guidelines along with your draft, I will comment on places where the letter seems to drift from what they ask for, such as a missing element, an unclear order or a section that runs long. The final check against the official instructions stays with you.
What the feedback looks like
You get your own document back, marked up in Word track changes and margin comments. A comment might point out that the need statement does not appear until the third paragraph, that the word ‘impact’ is carrying a claim the letter never supports, or that the request in the last paragraph does not match the program described earlier. Where a sentence is hard to follow, I may show a tighter version as a suggestion so you can see the idea.
Every change is yours to accept, rework or ignore. The letter stays in your voice and remains your work. For more on how the process runs, see how it works.
What I do not do
- I do not write, draft or fill in any part of a letter from your notes.
- I do not research funders for you or tell you which ones to approach.
- I do not submit anything on your behalf.
- I do not work on commission or take a share of any award.
- I make no promises about invitations, scores or funding decisions. Feedback can make a letter clearer; it cannot decide what a funder chooses.
Who the service suits
The natural fit is a letter of inquiry for a social science, education, business, humanities or nonprofit program. Grants in engineering or in medical and health sciences, such as clinical or biomedical proposals, are outside my scope, and I will say so plainly when you ask for a quote rather than take on work I should not.
Price and turnaround
Written feedback is priced by the length of your document, using the standard rates on the pricing page: $25 per 1,000 words with a 24-hour turnaround, $15 with 48 hours, or $10 with 72 hours. Because a letter of inquiry is short, the cost is usually modest. If you would also like a live call to talk through the letter, that is quoted separately once we agree on what it should cover.
To start, send the word count, your deadline and the file through the quote form.
Before and after the letter
A letter of inquiry often sits at the start of a longer process. If an invitation leads to a full submission, you may find these useful:
- Grant writing feedback overview
- Research grant proposal editing for the full proposal
- Specific aims page review
- Proposal coaching if you want to talk through the structure of your argument
You can also read about Ahsan Irfan, the one person behind every review, or browse the full FAQ.
Can you write my letter of inquiry if I send my notes?
No. Help Me Bro works only on a letter you have already written. I leave comments and tracked changes on your draft, and you make every revision yourself. I do not draft, fill in or ghost-write any section, whether from notes, an outline or a funder’s call.
How do I know my letter meets the funder’s length and format rules?
Check the funder’s own guidelines, since limits and required elements vary and I do not quote numbers for any funder. If you send those instructions with your draft, I will comment where the letter seems to drift from them, but the final check against the official rules is yours.
Will feedback improve my chances of being invited to submit a full proposal?
I cannot promise that, and I make no claims about funding rates, scores or invitations. What the feedback can do is show where your need, program, fit and ask are unclear or buried, so a reader can follow the letter more easily. Funders make their own decisions.
Do you help find funders that match my project?
No. I do not research funders or suggest where to apply. Feedback covers how well your letter presents your work to the funder you have already chosen, including whether the connection to their stated priorities is clear on the page.
Is a letter for an engineering or health-science grant something you can review?
No. Engineering and medical or health-science grants, including clinical or biomedical proposals, are outside my scope, and I will say so when you ask for a quote. Social science, education, business, humanities and nonprofit program letters are the natural fit.
What does it cost to have a short letter reviewed?
Pricing follows your word count at the standard per-1,000-word rates for 24, 48 or 72-hour turnaround, so a brief letter is typically inexpensive. A live call is quoted after we agree on what it should cover. Send the word count, deadline and file through the quote form for exact figures.