The Chaos Section Poetry Project is the poetry wing of a long-running opinion site founded in Austin, TX in 2012. The essays came first—written for people who wanted to say something real without chasing clicks or pretending to be neutral. The poetry side came later, for the words that didn’t fit into essays. For the lines that arrived crooked, sharp, or quiet, but still true.

We don’t publish individual poems on a regular basis. Our main focus is curating two themed chapbooks each year. In 2025, we released Record of Dissent: Poems of Protest in an Authoritarian Age as our summer collection, and we’re preparing a winter holiday release centered on coping mechanisms.

All chapbooks are released free to read on the site, with free high-quality digital downloads available, and a print edition offered for those who want a physical copy.

Each chapbook has its own theme, but we welcome a wide range of approaches within it—free verse, formal, experimental, personal, political, or anywhere in between. What matters is honesty, craft, and a voice that stays with you.

Interested in contributing? Visit our submissions page for open calls and guidelines.