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The concept may seem bizarre, but there is an art to be found in writing limericks that do not rhyme. The trick is to lead the reader to expect a certain rhyme, and replace it with a similar, non-rhyming word, or one that takes the limerick in a totally different direction. Alternatively, the reader has to try to work out what the original rhyme could have been. This is one way of getting round a potentially vulgar limerick, but is also an entertaining form in itself. Experiment to see if you can achieve this.

Miscellaneous

Countless variations exist, of which many have been listed above. This article has not mentioned the reverse limerick, in which the rhyming scheme is reversed, often in reply to someone else’s limerick. Again, Lear’s limericks are often the subject of these replies. There is also limerick poetry, which is difficult to write successfully, and of which the best known example is the famous ‘Nantucket’ limerick. Sir John Betjeman’s ‘Summer’, which he wrote as a schoolboy, is a wonderful example of limerick poetry.

Good luck with writing limericks – and have fun!

Recommended Further Reading:

The Lure of the Limerick by Willam S. Baring-Gould
(1979: 2nd ed.), Hart-Davis, Macgibbon Ltd./Crown (Out of print)
The Penguin Book of Limericks edited by E.O. Parrott
(1987: reprint): Penguin/Viking Press

For technical details:

http://www.sfu.ca/~finley/discussion.html

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