April brings with it loads of laughter, starting off with April Fools Day as well as National Fun Day and World Reading is Funny Day on the very first day. So why not bring you fun this Poetic Sunday with the parody poem? Read on to find out more about this and tips to write it.

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Poetic Sundays: The Parody Poem: When Old Lines LOL

Have I written parody poems before? Not sure, though I have explored the cento, the golden shovel, and the glosa. Each of these forms pays tribute to other poets by (in)directly drawing inspiration from their works.

The parody poem does that as well, and with World Reading is Fun Day coming up, what better way to revel in making reading fun than by writing something that makes it happen! So pick up your notebook and pen, or your laptop and get ready to craft one!

What is a Parody Poem?

A parody poem takes a well-known poem and gives it a playful twist—think of it as poetry with a hint (or more) of mischief. It sticks to the original poem’s rhythm, rhyme, and structure but flips the content for humor, irony, or just pure fun. Whether it’s exaggerating themes, twisting meanings, or giving a classic a modern merry makeover, a good parody pays tribute to the original poem while adding a delightful dose of wit.

Parody poems can be used to poke fun at the original work or address a completely different subject in a lighthearted way.

How to Write a Parody Poem

Choose a Poem to Parody

Select a popular and easily recognizable piece to ensure your audience will understand the references and appreciate your comedic twist; one that you are familiar with and that offers potential for humor or satire. This could be a famous poem, a nursery rhyme, genre, or even a poet’s style, such as:

• The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost
• Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll
• Any nursery rhyme
• Edgar Allen Poe’s The Raven

Get Familiar

Read the original poem multiple times to understand its structure, rhyme scheme, meter, and tone. Identify the elements that make the original work distinctive. Note any quirks, clichés, or aspects that could be exaggerated for comedic effect.

This will help you maintain the essence of the original while creating your parody. It will also help you determine which elements, such as specific lines, themes, or characters, you want to alter in your parody version.

Decide on Your Parody Angle

Come up with humorous or witty substitutions for the original elements you’ve identified. Consider how they will fit into your parodied poem. What will you do with the original poem to parody it? Will you

• modernize it? Update outdated themes or language for today’s world.
  • e.g. To Buy or Not to Buy: That is the Coupon Question or Do Not Go Gentle Into That Wi-Fi Dead Zone
• make it absurd? Take a serious poem and make it ridiculous or nonsensical. One way would be to make the poem a humorous take on everyday frustrations.
  • e.g., Stopping by a Fast-Food Drive-Thru or ‘Twas the Night Before Tax Day
• exaggerate the style? Overdo the original poet’s tone or style.
  • e.g. like extra-over-the-top Shakespearean language for one of the Bard’s sonnets?
• flip the perspective? Tell the poem from a different point of view.
  • The Raven: The Bird’s Point of View
• mash it up? Blend two or more unrelated things for comedic effect.
  • e.g.: Hickory Dickory Dock meets Edgar Allan Poe
• try something else completely? The possibilities are endless!

Write Your Parody Poem

Using your brainstormed ideas, craft your parody poem while adhering to the identifiable elements of the original – like structure, meter, and/or rhyme scheme. This helps readers recognize the source being parodied

Tips:

• Don’t forget to add a punchline or twist. A humorous or unexpected conclusion makes it all better!
• Keep it concise and to the point.
• Start with short poems, or just a stanza of your favorite poem (the one you chose to parody).
• Feel free to use made-up words

My Attempts at the Parody Poem (Keeping it Tech!)

The itsy-techsy spider
Typed upon a screen,
Clicked the wrong button
and saws things best unseen.
Up popped an error,
With warnings red and bright,
That had the itsy-techsy spider
Debugging through the night!

~ Vidya Tiru @ LadyInReadWrites (thanks to ‘anon’!)

It’s Better Where the Bars Are
Two roads diverged a yellow wood,
For a while, I wondered – this or that?
Finally, to help, I checked which path would
Have a strong wi-fi signal – one well and good
Then it was an easy decision, where the bars are at!
~ Vidya Tiru @ LadyInReadWrites (thanks to Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken)

Mary had a little phone,
She checked it all through the day.
And when she tried to put it down,
Her hands just wouldn’t obey!
~ Vidya Tiru @ LadyInReadWrites

References, Further Reading, and Inspiration

• The Golfer’s Rubáiyát
• Bored of the Rings by Henry N. Beard and Douglas C. Kenney. This will make a great gift for LOTR fans! You can also read it here.
• Take Me Out of the Bathtub and Other Silly Dilly Songs by Alan Katz and illustrated by David Catrow (2- 8 years, and up). There is a whole series of these books for you to enjoy actually!

Recently

On My Blog and the Home Front

These posts made their way out into the world on my blog this past week:

• 10 Beautiful Picture Books About the Piano: Celebrate the Magic
• Sunday Scribblings #216: The Prime Poem For You and More

Upcoming

On My Blog & Homefront

It is NaPoWriMo time again as well as the A to Z blogging challenge so I will be here everyday (hopefully!). My kids’ spring break is done so it is back to just us once again this coming week on the homefront.

This Week’s Celebrations

Literary Celebrations (close-to-it also!)

• Literary birthdays this week include: Nikolai Gogol and René Descartes on March 31st; Abraham Harold Maslow, Francine Prose, and Milan Kundera on April 1st; Hans Christian Andersen, and Sue Townsend on 2nd April; Washington Irving on the 3rd of April; Margaret Oliphant, Makhanlal Chaturvedi, and Maya Angelou on the 4th; Anthony Horowitz, Anu Garg, Arthur Hailey, and Robert Bloch on the 5th; the 6th celebrates Leigh Bardugo
• National Crayon Day on the 31st of March, which of course, belongs here too!
• It is World Reading is Funny Day on the 1st of April, and also Edible Book Day 
• The 2nd of April is International Children’s Book Day (for me, it is everyday!)
• Then comes National Hug a Newsperson Day on the April 4th
• Followed by Read a Road Map Day on the 5th.
• and National Library Day on the 6th of April
• April is English Language Month, National Poetry Month, as well as Poetic Earth Month.

Foodie Celebrations

• Start the week on the 31st with National Tater Day 
• April 1st is National Sourdough Bread Day (and 👍🏻 Edible Book Day!)
• While the 2nd is National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day
• Followed by more sugar with Chocolate Mousse Day on the 3rd of April
• Then the 4th celebrates some wellness with National Vitamin C Day and International Carrot Day 
• While April 5th observes National Caramel Day, National Raisin and Spice Bar Day, and National Deep Dish Pizza Day
• Lastly, it is National Caramel Popcorn Day, Fresh Tomato Day , National Acai Bowl Day, and National Food Faces day on April 6th.

Other Celebrations

• March 31st is World Backup Day reminding us all to backup our digital (and even ensure our physical). It is also National Bunsen Burner Day
  The 1st of April is National Fun Day, and of course, April Fool’s Day. It is also National One Cent Day.
• April 2nd is World Autism Awareness Day as well as National Reconciliation Day (credited to newspaper columnist Ann Landers). It is also National Walking Day (celebrated on the first Wednesday in April)
• The 3rd of April celebrates National Inspiring Joy Day, National Film Score Day, National Find a Rainbow Day, and World Party Day.
• April 4th makes you walk just a little bit more for it is National Walk Around Things Day. And it is also International Day for Landmine Awareness
• More walking for you with Walk to Work Day on the 5th of April. And maybe walk wearing bell bottoms for it is Bell Bottoms Day! And all this walking in a way of take care of ourselves with National Self-Care Day as well. This is also International Day of Conscience (UN observation)
• April 6th observes World Table Tennis Day and California Poppy Day (and I am seeing so many around my area this year!)
• Regarding walking, if you are up for it, then there is more walking to do on the 6th, with a twist – for it is International Firewalk Day! But you can choose to jump over it if you wish to avoid walking, for it is also Jump Over Things Day!

Wrapping up my Colors of Life Sunday Scribblings

So dear reader, you have reached the end of this Sunday Scribblings! As always, I welcome your thoughts, comments, and suggestions about this post. And do let me know if you plan to celebrate any of these mentioned celebrations this coming week/month?

Linking this to the Sunday Post over at the Caffeinated Reviewer and the Sunday Salon