"I intended an Ode, And it turned to a Sonnet"

In this quote, Austin Dobson is revealing his preliminary intention to write an Ode, a type of lyrical poem that generally applauds or commemorates a person or event. However, as he began writing, his words and thoughts took a various direction and the end result was a Sonnet, a kind of poem with a specific structure and rhyme scheme. This quote highlights the unpredictable nature of imagination and how even the very best laid strategies can change and evolve into something unanticipated. It also talks to the idea that often our biggest works originate from minutes of spontaneity and discrepancy from our initial intentions.