Fishin’ for Misery

Fishin’ for Misery follows Max as he freaks out over his mundane life. A comedic piece perfect for auditions, classroom performance, or short reels.

Featured Monologue – Fishin’ For Misery

MAX: How do you live each day of your life the way that you do? Everything is so casual, easy. You don’t stress over nothing. I’ve never seen you worry about a damn thing and look at yourself, you’re a moron. You have no career, no money, no prospects…how do you even get by? Whenever I see you it’s always easy street. I’ve never seen you drop a bead of sweat on anything Nicky. Don’t you wanna be something in your life?

Don’t you? Don’t you want to amount to something more than some dunce that dwells in the valley? …I didn’t mean to diss…I’m just upset, okay? It’s my own b.s. Has nothing to do with you. Hanging out with you and all makes me feel like I’m like you and you’re a, oh man, do you follow me or what? I feel like I’m in Loserville!

We come to the same joint every time to have beers and talk the same sh’t and see the same…we’re friends with Leonard the singing homeless man for goodness sakes. We’re on a first name basis. Other than you he’s my closest contact in this town. He’s come over my apartment for random sleepovers. And is that a good idea? Am I going insane? What’s going on?

I think I’m losing my mind man…I need to smoke up, we should smoke up, tell me you have some greenery.

My head’s gonna, I’m gonna tear my f’n head off my shoulders and throw it down one of the bowling lanes across the street and go out on a strike. I’m buggin’…do you have any?

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Monologue Summary

Fishin’ for Misery is a 1-minute comedic monologue for male actors.
Max rants to his friend about his miserable, stagnant life and erupts in frustration. Perfect for auditions, acting class, or reels.

• Genre: Comedy / Serio-Comedy
• Length: ~1 Minute
• Monologue Character: Max
• Age Range: 20’s-30’s
• Themes: frustration, unhappiness, self-doubt, friendship
• Best For: actors preparing for comedic auditions, drama class exercises, actor reels

World of the Play

• Cast Size: 1 Woman, 2 Men
• Characters in Play: Max (filmmaker), Nicky (friend), supporting character
• Synopsis: Max is a filmmaker down on his luck and can’t get a script backed by anyone in Hollywood. He confides in his friend Nicky at their usual hangout bar.

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Monologue Source: Fishin’ for Misery

This monologue is from Fishin’ for Misery, a one-act ePlay by Joseph Arnone, 2025.