The Eulogy [an unofficial challenge]

Welcome back to another unofficial challenge!!

I'd like to celebrate ONE YEAR of unofficial challenges! Feels like the time really flew by. My first challenge ("Inside the Animal's Mind") was for May 2024, and now here we are, about to enter May 2025!

Over the past year, I have hosted 10 unofficial writing challenges, and now this is the 11th! I'm very excited to continue hosting these, and I want to say a BIG THANK YOU to everyone who has entered and shown interest in these challenges over the past year!

A big round of applause to you all!

Now, for THIS CHALLENGE....

The Prompt

Write a story that is entirely made of a single character's dialogue (i.e., write a monologue) with a crazy twist!

So why did you call this challenge "The Eulogy?"

I am glad you asked!

This prompt was inspired by an episode of BoJack Horseman, in which the titular character gives a 20-minute long eulogy and realizes something life-changing while delivering it. Yes, the entire episode (excluding the intro) is just BoJack delivering a eulogy.

Funny thing: Genius.com actually has a transcript of the entire eulogy, which you can find at the bottom of this post (because it is very very long)! It is from the episode "Free Churro" (Season 5, Episode 6). I highly recommend you take a look at it to see what kind of writing I am looking for!

Some notes!

There is a difference between a monologue and a story written in first-person. Make sure you distinguish your story as a monologue. How do you do this?

• If your whole piece is just speech (no need for quotations) make sure it is clear that it is not a first-person story and is actually speech that is being delivered (rather than just a journal entry). For example, in the Genius.com transcript, BoJack calls upon the piano man to give him a riff, apologizes to the audience for the closed casket, etc.
• You don't need to just have speech. You can include quotations for the monologue and non-quoted material that indicates things about the character's actions/tone. For example, in the Genius.com transcript, the entire thing is written without quotes, but it still includes things like [clears throat]. You can write your monologue in quotations, but then include non-quoted material. See below:

"No one ever tells you that when your mom dies, you get a free churro."

He paused for a moment and cleared his throat before continuing.

"Anyway, I'm sorry, that's not part of the... All right."

• You can include other characters, but make sure that your main character is the only one with dialogue (hence the monologue). You can write about other characters' physical reactions. For example, in the Genius.com transcript of the BoJack episode, it includes [people murmuring]. See below:

"No one ever tells you that when your mom dies, you get a free churro."

The audience began to murmur as if upset by this line. He nervously cleared his throat and started again.

"Anyway, I'm sorry, that's not part of the... All right."

ALSO TO BE CLEAR:

YOU DO NOT NEED TO WRITE A EULOGY. It can be any kind of monologue you'd like! Just make sure to include some kind of twist in it! Something important should happen that is either the character revealing something to the audience/other character, to the reader (us), or to himself!

(In the case of BoJack Horseman, he reveals a couple of things to himself/realizes a couple of things.)

If you have any other questions, reach out!

Other Criteria

Word Count: There is no word count limit on this! I would suggest that you write a fair amount. This should not just be like a poem. I would recommend trying to get past the 250/300 word mark.

You do NOT need to have a 20-minute long monologue, but your entry should have some sort of plot (i.e., some context through the speech, rising action, climax, etc.). Take that as you will!

Link back: If possible, embed a link at the end of your entry to this page so others can enter if they feel inspired to!

Comment: Come back and comment once your entry has been published! Otherwise I won't see it D:

The entries will be acknowledged with a reply and inserted into a list toward the bottom of this post. Come back in a few days after you've entered and make sure I added you in!

FAQ

Can I make more than one submission? Yes! I welcome it! Just keep in mind that only one submission per creator can be featured in the Top 3!

Can I submit a story that I have already written? I used to say yes to this question, but I think I'm gonna start saying no... Just because I'd like to see some new material out there!

Important Dates

Deadline: This challenge will close on Sunday, June 15th, 2025, at 11:59pm MST.

Results: The results will be posted on Sunday, June 22nd, 2025, with the possibility of extending if I get more entries than anticipated. If that is the case, this post will be updated to reflect that change.

UPDATE: HAH, Why did I think the challenge closed on the 31st?? Anyhow, the results will be posted in the first week of June!! My apologies for the delay (which seems to be about EVERY TIME)

The results post will include the Top 3 entries (1st, 2nd, 3rd place) as well as little blurbs rationalizing my choices. There will be links to all submissions included at the end.

Prizes? Currently my prizes are community based and not monetary. The prize goes to the 1st place winner only, in which I will read, like, and comment on FIVE of your posts that I have not yet read, as well as subscribe if I have not already.

If you have any questions about the prompt, feel free to comment below! I can't wait to see what you come up with! Happy writing everyone!

♡ Belle ♡

PS. Here is my example entry! (The last line isn't part of the monologue, but I won't be strict about that for every entry either)

(You can find the entry list below, and the Genius.com transcript of the BoJack episode below that.)

The Entries

All entries will be linked here in the order in which they were submitted.

1. "Then, It Was My Turn" by David E. Perry
2. "Phinehas Shaw" by David E. Perry
3. "Mr. Whiskers" by Kendall Defoe
4. "UNSENT (2:17 AM): Monologue of We Were Never Sisters" by Dalma Ubitz

Genius.com BoJack Horseman "Free Churro" Eulogy Transcript