Structured Madness: New Poems in Traditional Formats

by C.S. Fuqua

In the 1990s, C.S. Fuqua began researching the histories and structures of the myriad of poetry formats, both familiar and unfamiliar from cultures around the world. He found that most have a tendency toward dated language and topics. Fuqua decided to challenge himself to combining traditional formats with modern language and themes. The result is Structured Madness ~ New Poems in Traditional Formats, a collection of 80 previously unpublished poems that explore modern relationships and themes in traditional and modern poetic formats, from the sestina and Shakespearean sonnet to the magic 9, haiku, and luc bat, as well as many others.

144 pages, Paperback

Published July 16, 2024

About the author

C.S. Fuqua's work appears widely in publications as diverse as Bull Spec, Main Street Rag, Iodine, Brutarian, Slipstream, Pearl, Bogg, Chiron Review, The Year's Best Horror Stories, Cemetery Dance, Christian Science Monitor, Honolulu Magazine, Naval History, The Writer, and many others. His published books include Rise Up short fiction collection, Trust Walk short fiction collection, If I Were (children's poems), Big Daddy's Gadgets (SF novel), Notes to My Becca, Alabama Musicians: Musical Heritage from the Heart of Dixie, and Divorced Dads, among others. Two of his books, Divorced Dads and Notes to My Becca, were published under the pseudonym C. Stephen Fouquet.

Fuqua is a full-time writer. His hobbies include music and crafting Native American flutes.

Reviews

[Suanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recently I reread Dylan Thomas’s villanelle “Do not go gentle into that good night” which was written in 1947 for his dying father. Somehow, it touched me much more than when I read it in college, perhaps because I am considerably older. After reading a fair amount of modern free-form poetry, I found great comfort in the repetition, rhyme, and refrain of the villanelle form. At this point, I ran across C.S. Fuqua’s book of poetry, Structured Madness: New Poems in Traditional Formats. Fuqua writes of modern life in the traditional poetic forms, and conveniently lists each form and the requirements to meet that form in an extensive glossary in the back of the book. Some of my favorites include “List”, which is simply an inventory of what’s in a wallet, but which tells a story. His villanelle, “Repossession”, deals with the repossession of a woman’s trailer home. I enjoyed his rhymed free verse “Compact” about a woman’s makeup compact and her son’s feelings when he finds it after her death. Fuqua’s works range from looking at the minuscule (as in “Compact”) to gazing at the universe and eternity with stops along the way to look with some poignancy at life, death, religion, family relationships, and coming of age. In the words of the author, these poems are his “experiment[s] in style and form without indulging in so-called experimental poetry of the day, to craft a poem that sounds poetic,” and certainly succeeds in his goal. An excellent read with poems to savor and read again and again. An excellent read with poems to savor and read again and again.

[Andrew Mossberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! A skilled exploration of different poetic forms by a master of the craft with original compositions for each type and a wonderful explanation of the technical details at the end. Going through the poems of unfamiliar form it is fun to try to determine the rules that constrained it. I’d recommend going through at a poem or two a day to fully appreciate the works. Here’s an example, the poem that names the collection:

“I came here to lose my mind, but I discovered you, calm and apprised.
You came here to lose your mind, but you discovered a purple sunrise.
We came here to lose our minds, but found ourselves entwined and tantalized.”

Excerpt From
Structured Madness: New Poems in Traditional Formats
C. S. Fuqua

[Lina Malskies · Rating 5 out of 5]

C.S. Fuqua’s Structured Madness: New Poems in Traditional Formats is a collection of poetry in — as the name suggests — traditional poetry formats but challenging the usage of old language typically used in such and exploring a modern take on it.
In 143 pages the reader gets Shakespearean sonnets, Haikus, Strambottos, Free Verse … and obviously many more formats.

If you know me, you know I’m very picky when it comes to poetry, but I have to say I very much enjoyed this one! Even reading through the preface, I knew I’d enjoy and find an interest in his voice in writing. Each poem felt right where it needed to be, perfectly worded and deserving of its place on the page. As a natively non-English speaking person I often find old poetry hard to understand, while also not fancying super modern poetry. This felt like the perfect compromise of both.

In the preface you get an introduction to the reason and inspiration behind the work and you will agree, it is no wonder he dedicates his work to his wife.

In four parts, the 80 poems go through a variety of topics; from love, life and death to family stories and memories to growing older and changing. The poems have a very mundane aspect, while never being boring but rather wrapping all of life in lovely lines.
Amongst my favorite poems were: To Hold, An Ode To Cheap, Guilt, A Shot of Jack, She, Paths

Overall I am very grateful to have read this, as under normal circumstances I may have never discovered it.
And if you read this review, maybe let it be an introduction to an author you haven’t read before. ✨

[Kanwarpal Singh · Rating 3 out of 5]

I came across C.S. Fuqua’s book of poetry, Structured Madness: New Poems in Traditional Formats, as he writes about modern life in the traditional poetic forms, and conveniently lists each form and the requirements to meet that form in an extensive glossary in the back of the book.

After reading a fair amount of modern free-form poetry, I found great comfort in the repetition, rhyme, and refrain of the villanelle form . His villanelle, “Repossession”, deals with the repossession of a woman’s trailer home. I enjoyed his rhymed free verse “Compact” about a woman’s makeup compact and her son’s feelings when he finds it after her death. Fuqua’s works range from looking at the minuscule (as in “Compact”) to gazing at the universe and eternity with stops along the way to look with some poignancy at life, death, religion, family relationships, and coming of age.

In the words of the author, these poems are his “experimental in style and form without indulging in so-called experiments going on poetry of the time, to craft a poem that sounds poetic,” and certainly succeeds in his goal. An excellent read with poems to savor and read again and again. An excellent read with poems to savor and read again and again