General Rules(distilled from several sources): 

1. Do your homework!  Know your prospect / funding source well.
   1. Are there local or Assumption connections?
2. Grantmakers never fund proposals they have not received. 
   1. Foundations have to give away money, and they usually have a pretty clear idea of what they want to support. 
      1. Foundations prefer projects that make a difference to society.
   2. Corporations want to make money, so your proposal must match the stated objectives of the corporation's giving program.  How will your project enhance their public image?
3. The more proposals you submit, the better chance of finding support.  Keep enough hooks in the pond to maintain continuity in your work.  (Start with a generic proposal that can be tailored to grantmakers' interests.) 
4. Read and follow the guidelines to the letter.  Make your ideas fit their guidelines.  Keep in mind that grantmakers own the money and they control it. 
5. Never request things that you don't want or don't want to do.  Request everything that you do want. 
6. Demonstrate why your project should be done (the 'need') and why you are the right person to do the job (your unique qualifications). 
7. Tell a truthful story--tell it well and make it sell.   Sing!
8. Don't equivocate, use the active voice, be positive, bold and confident.  Don't use words such as 'perhaps, might, could,' rather, use the word 'will'.  
   1. Avoid negativity, controversy or finding fault
   2. Avoid jargon
9. Get to the point immediately; the first paragraph should tell the entire story; don't write endless paragraphs of preliminary 'stuff'. 
   1. Don't overstate your case.
10. Grant proposals are read, not weighed. In general, the shorter the proposal, the better.  Edit!
    1. Don't develop a fetish for appendices--if a topic is important, put it in the narrative.  If neither the guidelines nor your arguments require certain information--omit it--don't add endless paperwork. 
11. Format is important!  Have two or three knowledgeable colleagues read proposal drafts and revisions of those drafts.  Read the final draft to a colleague aloud.