Two Poems by
By Halley Kunen
"Occluded Vessel"
I collapse at the plinth
sagging over the edge, a monolith
knowing I can’t gulp down anymore tonight,
knowing I ingested too much,
spoors of spirits dispersed in the dusk like musk tracks
I sip the sky
admiring its lush.
How will I huff my way over the hydrospheres
as though I am on a plane
in the captain’s pit
playing with the buttons
as though there is no consequence.
Like I tapped the wine stains on your oxford,
as though they could extend
like branches in the ulna
like flowstones in a cavern.
Now the liquid runs through your hands
like a spill from the piscina
I can’t catch it in time.
I wasn’t wanting to get drunk
I was only wanting salvation.
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"Plaque Refractions"
Guzzling ellipses in the dark
not sure which ones I grab for
I don’t care
swivel my hands so extra fall to the floor
and scatter like snowflakes
poind nails and then slide off
looking to bury themselves
while my ejecta confines the blinds
like contrails disgrace the wraiths.
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1957 - 2025
Remembering Michael Madsen
Michael Madsen, the Legendary actor and poet, was also the father of our editor in Chief, Kalvin M. Madsen (AKA Calvin Michael Madsen). We will continue to honor him by showcasing poets, and working to help new voices rise through the weeds. Look out for Michael's upcoming poetry collection, releasing next year.
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War & Resistance
Digimag
Low Hanging Fruit is proud to announce the launch of a special edition: the War & Resistance Digimag this Friday, March 7th. This digital issue is designed to raise funds for VOSTOK SOS, a volunteer initiative providing essential humanitarian aid, evacuation assistance, and psychological support to victims of military aggression in eastern Ukraine and Crimea.
Low Hanging Fruit
Issue 2
Winter 2025
Out Now!
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Low Hanging Fruit publishes literary and visual arts for your viewing pleasure. The work found in this second issue, released at the dawn of the New Year 2025, brings together another rich tapestry of contemporary, first-time-published art from creators around the globe. Making use of the vast connectivity of the Internet, the editors at L.H.F once again called upon artists everywhere to submit whatever might be lingering in their archives—any “low hanging fruit” they were willing to share.
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HYDROZOANS By Marianne Villanueva
Drifting, midwater. Jellies look alien, like something from Plan B from Outer Space.
Teacher looks entranced. The students can tell she's out of her body, out of her mind, out of the classroom.
Teacher is thinking, hydrozoans. She's thinking, bioluminescent. Order, narcomedusae.
Students are thinking: It’s the first week back after the holidays. Here we go again.
Decades later, on the Nostradamus. She's made a specialty of studying members of this taxa.
The ocean depths are dark as dark. But wherever she points the submersible beam, there are shapes moving. Black, triangular.
There is still so much the world doesn't know. Of course her family worries. But it’s her tenth dive. She knows the drill.
And even if the worst happened, she knows it will be quick. She prefers that way rather than growing old. She’s told her family, many times: She doesn’t do regret.
Poor Miss Diaz, she thinks. Stuck in her little white blouse, her flowered skirt. Pointing at figures on the blackboard while her students steal glances at their phones.
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The Michael Madsen Poetry Award 2026
We're pleased to announce the creation of the Michael Madsen Poetry Award, a new annual prize dedicated to celebrating poetry that embodies a specific kind of truth.
Presented by Low Hanging Fruit Magazine and Kalvin M. Madsen, this award will recognize verse that cuts to the bone—work that is honest, uncompromising, and born from lived experience. We are seeking narratives that don't shy away from the hard realities of life but instead confront them with a clear, resonant voice. This is for the poetry that explores the shadows, finds beauty in forgotten places, and reveals the stories whispered on street corners and in the quiet, bruised moments of life.
The first call for submissions will begin in 2026. The award will be judged by the Madsen Brothers and the editorial staff of Low Hanging Fruit Magazine. Further details regarding submission guidelines, the prize, and sponsorship opportunities will be announced in the coming months.
Submit your prose/poetry/visual art
Low Hanging Fruit is in the process of becoming. That being said, we are interested in a variety of genres and mediums. From poetry to photography, we seek anything you think can be expressed on a page or screen.
While we are interested in an array of mediums, we have some interests. Special attention is given to speculative and socio-political fiction or works meant to challenge world views or color our mental associations. For visual works, anything goes. Comics and compilations/series are welcome, physical and digital art.
About LHF Literary & Arts
Low Hanging Fruit was created by me, Kalvin M. Madsen. I am a person, a writer, a Californian, and several other adjectives and identifiers. I created this website to get more involved in the world of literature and arts, satisfying my own passion while promoting the work of others.
Perhaps this website will lead to printed editions. My hope is to one day evolve this project into a literary & arts magazine, printed quarterly or biannual. I am but one person, but it is my sincere hope that this will grow out of my control and become its own entity wrangled by editors, managers, reviewers, and all other organelles of publication.
The name, for those interested, is stolen from my intro to fiction teacher at UCSB. He told us to create a literary magazine of this name, and so I have. He was frustrated that the work we were creating in our fiction class had no place to be published and presented to anyone. So, in my small way, I swung my bat.
Thank you for visiting and reading this entry. Consider submitting a piece, or urging your friends to.
-Calvin Madsen, March 30th 2024
