Grant denials feel personal. I see it every day. We submit hundreds of applications a year and denials are expected. Several denials in a row change the dynamic. The nonprofit looks to the grant writer for answers. The grant writer goes back to the program staff for more detail. The case gets refined. The language gets tighter. Another application goes out. Then another denial comes back. From the outside, it looks like a writing problem. The truth is denials have very lit