For the last couple of years, I’ve been a member of a local group called the Amps Network. For a reasonable annual fee, creative folks in and around Dundee can join to meet other members and occasionally attend exclusive events.
I’d known about the network for a long time before I eventually joined. I thought I wouldn’t be welcome because I don’t rely on the arts for my main income. Many members are full-time in the arts, but this is not an exclusive club. Amps events tend to be seasonal, and it’s been more active over the last month or so.
Last week, I joined a discussion group at Dundee Rep Theatre asking how life could be improved for freelancers. One issue dominating this discussion was the recent £6.6 million budget reduction for Creative Scotland, although other issues like communication and longer-term projects were also prominent.
This morning, I also attended a weekly video call for members to discuss questions from, ‘Are you an early bird or a night owl?’ to ‘What makes you contented with your creative practice?’
A regular feature of meetings is Pass the Mic. If members have a project they would like to promote, they can be announced to the group at the end of the event. I’ve learnt this came about by necessity after a projector broke down at an event and the presenter had to fill 20 minutes while it was fixed.
I’ve stolen the idea for my own open-mic event, Hotchpotch. The difference is that our microphone isn’t wireless, so can’t be passed around. Instead, we substitute a tin of chocolates while members promote their work.
Speaking of Hotchpotch, we’re pleased to be able to continue again tomorrow, Wednesday 11 October. Our format evolved on the pub circuit, where we’d enjoyed using a room free of charge for a long time. As we’re now taking over a café and need to pay a hire fee for the evening, tweaks have been made to the format. These include an earlier start, a 9pm curfew, and the introduction of a donations system.
Next week, I hope to be able to bring good news about how it went.
Gavin Cameron 
Hopefully all goes well at the cafe and it’s good your area has so many ways to bring creative types together. That is fun how the open mic projector mishap lead to the birth of “Pass the Mic”.
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Thank you. I’m pleased to report our cafe event did go well, and that’ll form the basis of next week’s entry.
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