So, what’s this digital digest all about? And, why on Earth is it called “The Biscuit?” Matt Olin & Tim Miner have their reasons. And, they’re happy (maybe a little too happy) to tell you all about it. Take a bite.

“What am I hungry for?”

It’s likely a question that each of us asks ourselves every day. Most of the time, it’s about what we want to eat next. But, hunger is about more than food. The question is: Do we get it? The harder question is: Do we feed others?

In 2015, we were hungry. We decided to do something about it.

How did these two knuckleheads meet up?
Apologies if you’ve already heard this, but the two of us met in an audition line for a production of Ten Little Indians at Charlotte Catholic High School in 1990. From there, a creative partnership formed. It expanded into college and beyond, spanning everything from acting and directing plays together to co-writing a weekly humor column in The Daily Tar Heel at UNC-Chapel Hill. Our off-times were spent competing with our friends to see who could make everyone laugh the hardest.

And then … life happened. Matt moved to New York City to conquer Broadway. Tim became “the marketing dude” for several Charlotte companies and initiatives. We both got married and started families.

In the fall of 2015, Matt had recently moved “back home” to Charlotte from NYC with his family and was seeking a new creative outlet. After 12 years of living the “Dad Life” of work-home-work-home, Tim had settled into a routine and was missing out on the creativity popping up all over the Queen City. Then, we were awarded a chapter of CreativeMornings. Things started to change.

Gathering hundreds of people together once a month to celebrate the creativity inside them and at work all over the Charlotte community started feeding us and, we hope, others. It introduced us to individuals and companies that helped us start additional efforts like Queen City Quiz Show and the HUG (Helpful Unfettered Gift) micro-grant program. It laid the foundation for new partnerships and friendships that we treasure and the creation of our non-profit, Charlotte Is Creative, which sprung out of our initial hashtag #CharlotteIsCreative.

Something was in the air in 2015.
And, we weren’t alone. There must have been a lot of hungry people in the Queen City in 2015, because remarkable efforts popped up all over that year – Hygge, SkillPop, People of Charlotte, Skyline Artists In Residence (which became Goodyear Arts) and The Charlotte Podcast, just to name a few. Each of these influenced our journey in profound ways. Each of them – and more – has ultimately led to the creation of The Biscuit.

As we round the corner into 2019, our lives now look very different. We’ve gotten to devote our full attention to the creative community here. Although we’re even deeper in love with Charlotte than we were when we started, we’re still hungry for a great many things for ourselves and for you: Collaboration, Connection, Awareness, Color, Intrigue, Pride, Recognition, Voice and Laughter. (This one is really important to us.)

That’s where biscuits come in.

There’s not much that’s more Southern than a biscuit. They’re warm and buttery and comforting. They’re as welcome at the dinner table as they are at the breakfast table. They fill you up, but you always end up reaching for one more. Impossibly, everything tastes better between two halves of a biscuit.

As we developed Charlotte Is Creative over the past three years, we realized the need for more ways to share the stories about the creative people and initiatives and energy at work here in the Queen City. In addition to producing live events like CreativeMornings and Queen City Quiz Show, we felt pulled to create a communication channel that shines a light on Charlotte’s hard-working creatives. How does their work impact social entrepreneurism and social good in Charlotte? How does creativity impact quality of life? How can creative thinking push our 250-year-old city into the next 250? Let’s find out.

Adding biscuits to the menu.
There’s an array of fantastic media outlets already sharing information on creative and artist events and activities in Charlotte. But, there are so many stories to tell in a city that doesn’t yet realize how amazing it is. It’s more than these existing efforts – and now ours in the mix – can hope to cover. But we’re game to try.

Today, we’re rolling out the first issue of The Biscuit, thanks to our partners OrthoCarolina and Crescent Communities. It’ll start as a bi-weekly digital digest, and we hope it’ll become one of your new Sunday traditions. Please pass the plate around and share with others.

Working alongside existing efforts, we want The Biscuit to encourage you to get to know the creatives living and working around you. We want to incite you to explore parts of the city you’ve never seen before. More than that, we want you to dive in, get to know your neighbors and engage your own creativity along the way. And, yup, we aim to do it all with a little bit of laughter. That’s our favorite half of the biscuit.

One last thing. We’re writing recipe for The Biscuit as we go – and we’re going to need lots of ingredients. Don’t be shy. Tell us what you’d like to see added to the plate. Our contact info is below.

Hope you’re hungry. There’s plenty for everyone.

Matt Olin & Tim Miner

Still hungry? Take a few more bites.

• Follow Matt Olin at @MattOlinCreative.
• Follow Tim Miner at @AFewMinerTweaks.
• e-Mail us at hello@charlotteiscreative.com
• Take two scoops of #CharlotteIsCreative.
• Enjoy a wake-up cup of CreativeMornings/Charlotte.