I wish there was some magic to it. I've only applied for stuff that was aimed at supporting new news-related ideas. So far I've applied for 7 grants and won o

I wish there was some magic to it. I've only applied for stuff that was aimed at supporting new news-related ideas. So far I've applied for 7 grants and won one of them. I have two applications in the hopper right now but both are longshots. For this grant in particular, the Chicago Community Trust announced it had $500,000 and wanted to give it to Chicago-based, Chicago-focused, news-oriented projects. About 70 people applied and they gave money to 12 applicants. I received a little less than half of what I requested but am extremely grateful and excited to have some cash to play with. Considering the criteria, I probably would have done something drastic had I not made the cut for that one... :)