Limericks For Dummies

Hi, it's Nimue here to teach you how to write a limerick! Where did this ancient form of Earth poetry originate? We don't know. Some suspect it was from a mythical underwater city named Atlanta. Others still say it was a sacred art originating in a place called Los Angeles, but yet others argue that that's only because Los Angeles features prominently in our only remaining earth media and "not everything can be from Los Angeles, okay?" Neverthless, the art of the limerick is simple to learn, and simple to teach. Let's get started:

1. A limerick must have an AABBA rhyme scheme. A limerick has five lines. The first, second, and fifth line should rhyme with each other. This is rhyme "A." To create rhyme "B," rhyme the third and fourth lines with each other.

2. In addition to rhyme, the poem should follow a syllable scheme where the first, second, and fifth lines have eight or nine syllables. The third and fourth lines will have five or six syllables.

3. Limericks are usually humorous or ribald in nature, so make them fun. For example, here is one I wrote about Necerursh finally getting his long-awaited chance to try to murder me, but running away with his tail between his legs because I wasn't alone:

A There once was a fellow named Nece
A Whose stalking me would never cease
B But I must confess
B He made a hasty egress
A When his odds of failure increased.

See? Not so hard after all! Now let's look at a bad example of a limerick:

A There was once a little W'hoorn from SD,
B She never did much but die.
C When she came out, all she could do was pout,
D So she just sat on her ship all day.

Not only do NONE of these lines rhyme, but the syllables are completely off, and the subject matter is not only NOT humorous, but it's also erroneous (aside from dying, I do an awful lot of hacking Celestine's CAC! Give me some credit, right?)

Let's try again with another example to make sure you got it:

A There once was a badass named Nim
A And she hacked CACs just on a whim
B She annoyed CA
B And it made her day
A And now Song's CAC is full to the brim.

Got it? Great! Feel free to try again with what you've learned! If you need one on one instruction, just contact me. I'd be glad to assist you.

Nim xoxo