Writing Odes

Ode is a lyric poem in the form of an address to a particular subject, often elevated in style or manner and written in varied or irregular meter. The ancient Greeks and Romans often sang their odes in celebration of great athletes, memorable events and magnificent places.

When you write an ode, you take something you really love and pay tribute to it in an exaggerated way, "bringing it to life" and speaking to it. It does not necessarily have to rhyme or have rhythm.

Advices

1.  Choose a subject you have strong feelings about;

2.  Describe your subject inside and out;

3.  Exaggerate its admirable qualities, until it seems to become central to human existence;

4.  Tap all five senses (if they fit);

5.  Use metaphors and similes;

6.  At times, directly address the subject of your ode;

7.  Tell your feelings about the subject and describe its qualities;

8.  Choose strong words.

Examples

Ode to Watermelon

I bite into you

and relish the burst of wild flavor

I haven't tasted all winter.

Your sweet juice

floods my mouth

buries my tongue

in fresh pinkish flesh.

I swallow your cold fruitiness

and my tastebuds smile

with excitement.

Oh, watermelon,

the scent of June wind,

mixed with the heat of August sun

washes over me

as I take another bite

of summer.

- Marnie Briggs

Ode to a Star

O, star in heaven,

do you relax during the day

with Zeus in his palace?

Are you shiny from being waxed

at the drive-thru car wash?

Or were you once an albino fly

that climbed high, high until you hit

indigo flypaper, and now you're stuck,

squirming to be free?

Are you a diamond

that fell off my charm bracelet

and you're searching the midnight sky

for the lonely chain?

Are you the ornament

I decorated last Christmas,

the one the cat knocked off our tree?

I gaze into the cobalt sky

and wish this was the night

I might name one,

just one, constellation

(other than the Big Dipper,

of course)

But no.

Once again I fail

as an astronomer.

I know that I will never

join a star gazing club

to tally the arrival of you

and your sisters and brothers.

O, star,

your mother's brother's daughter's aunt

would be my favorite constellation

if I were ever accepted

into the astonomer's association.

Until then I will lie on the snow

sing your praises, and discover my own

constellations.

- Nora Bradford

References

FBISD. Writing Odes. Available on: http://goo.gl/PC0OMw.

MAHALO. How to Write an Ode Poem. Available on: http://goo.gl/lmAz8o.