Co-op opens studio space to Charlotte writers

Kathie Collins

Self-employed Charlotte writers no longer have to put pen to paper in isolation.

Kathie Collins, a local author and academic writer, is giving them studio space and friendship.

Collins, 49, recently started the August Moon Creative Co-Op and is renting out studio space in Plaza Midwood to creative professional and recreational writers tired of working alone. She wants them to congregate, she said, and tap into the "the power of group synergy."

The studio is a classroom in the Midwood International and Cultural Center on Central Avenue, near Zada Jane's Corner Cafe and Lulu, a French bistro. It comes furnished with a couch, throw pillows, WiFi, bookshelves and a dry erase board.

She's charging co-op members a monthly $125 fee to help pay the costs of renting the room, which is $750 per month.

"It's really a beautiful space," she said. "It's this feeling of being in a school."

The studio space at the Midwood International and Cultural Center

Writers who can take advantage of the room include professional, recreational or freelance writers who might find it hard to focus on their craft at home. She's also offering to rent to artists or anyone with "good creative energy...interested in spending time with other people doing similar work."

The room will be available night and day, she said.

Collins, a UNC Chapel Hill graduate and mother of five, is a published poet who has written Biblical reflections for the Educational Center in Charlotte.

Anyone interested in renting studio space can contact Kathie Collins at 704-458-3293 or kathiescollins@gmail.com. The co-op meets at the Midwood International and Cultural Center, Suite 302 at 1817 Central Ave.