Charlotte Lit

Authors Lab and Chapbook Labs are year-long immersions to assist writers in completing a novel or memoir (Authors Lab) or a book of poetry (Chapbook Lab). Writers in each cohort attend craft classes as a group, receive individual coaching and feedback on their writing, and experience extensive support from their peer group. Authors Lab had 21 writers in the 2022 cohort; Chapbook Lab had 11. Both Lab programs are fee-based with scholarships available.

Charlotte Lit launched the Lit/South Awards, for writers who reside or once resided in North Carolina and its four contiguous states: South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, and Tennessee. In 2022, awards were given in four categories: poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and flash. 450 entries were received, and $10,000 in prizes were awarded. Winners in each category, plus all poetry finalists and semi-finalists, were published in the inaugural issue of Litmosphere: Journal of Charlotte Lit.

Charlotte Lit provides more than 100 classes per year, half of them free. Three-quarters are targeted to writers who wish to improve their craft or learn about the business side of being a writer, with another quarter targeted to anyone who appreciates literature or wants to explore their world through literature. Weekly, Charlotte Lit offers a free writing session called Pen to Paper, which draws more than 1000 people annually.

Charlotte Lit hosts a variety of literary arts programming that does not generate revenue. These include Community Conversations, poetry readings, and social events. Program expenses allocated across these programs, and which cannot be attributed directly to one of the other listed programs.