As fan of the works of Matsuo Bashō, in 1915, Ōta began the tanka literary magazine, Chōon to publicize his research, and gradually moved from creating his own verse to writing about the theory of tanka and his researches of the Japanese classics.
In 1915, as a dedicated follower of Matsuo Bashō's poetry, Ōta established the tanka literary journal Chōon to present his research. Over time, he shifted focus from composing new tanka to discussing tanka theory and studying Japanese literature.