- Maker: Joanna Sutherland
- Genre: Mako Media Radio script: Satire
- Level: Graduate
- Program: Composition, Rhetoric, and Digital Media
- Course: WRIT 5800: Editing, Layout, and Design
- Instructor: Dr. Eric Mason
- Semester Created: Winter 2026
Description
A limerick with commentary in the style of Wait Wait, Don’t Tell Me for the Mako Media TN2U show, based on the news article about a goldfish driving far enough to break the Guinness World Record.
Reflection
The design thinking process helped as I started by focusing more on the elements of what should be included, instead of the final product. I read two versions of the original news article in order to ascertain the most important aspects of the story: a goldfish driving and his scientist owner, while following the structure of a limerick. Although I would have liked have included the Guinness Book of Records in the limerick, the fact of the goldfish driving was surprising enough, and the additional information about it being a record-breaking feat could be discussed in the commentary. This process was similar to a typical writing assignment, with the exception of the brevity and particular rhyme scheme of the format.
I was pleased with the outcome, as I was able to follow the conventions of a limerick in form, structure, and effect, through saving the important reveal of the goldfish driving for the last word of the last line.
This work was strongly informed by my lifelong love of poetry; having read limericks from about the age of five, I have memories of creating new limericks and other verses while on long family walks. So, the form and structure are very familiar to me, and I enjoy the challenge of using a set structure to remix ideas and humor.
