Poetry, SouthPole Issue #1

SouthPole is looking for a poem for the first print issue of our zine.

One poem. One page maximum. We’re looking for something human-written that finds the human thing in it.

SouthPole is an independent publication about what happens where technology meets human experience. We publish stories about technology, culture, art, music, space, craft, and work—but mostly we’re interested in people: things made, learned, repaired, performed, remembered, and noticed. Especially the knowledge that tends to disappear when nobody thinks to ask about it.

For this call, your poem does not need to be about technology or AI. In fact, we’re not looking for a particular subject so much as a sensibility. We like work that pays attention: to people, places, objects, rituals, skills, systems, mistakes, memories, odd corners of ordinary life, or something we haven’t thought to name.

SouthPole uses AI as part of its own editorial workflow, and we’re open about that. But this particular space in Issue #1 is for a human-written poem. AI-generated or AI-assisted poems aren’t eligible for this call.

The selected poem will appear in SouthPole Issue #1, a small physical edition with a two-color Risograph cover, photocopied interior pages, and hand-applied elements.

How to submit

Send one poem, no more than one page, to john@southpole.blog with the subject line Poetry, SouthPole Issue #1.

Attach your poem as a PDF (preferred) or Word document. Include your name and a short bio in the email. No formal cover letter is necessary.

Please submit only one poem. Simultaneous submissions are fine; just let us know if the poem is accepted elsewhere. For this first call, we’re looking for work that has not previously been published.

AI: This call is for human-written poetry. Please don’t submit work generated or written with generative AI.

Payment: $25, plus a contributor copy of SouthPole Issue #1.

Rights: The selected poem will be published in SouthPole Issue #1 and may also be published on southpole.blog. SouthPole asks for first publication rights in print and online. Copyright remains with the author, and after publication the author is free to republish the work elsewhere.

Deadline: October 31, 2026.

Response: We’ll respond to every submission, usually within a few days.