Nothing quite makes a student’s short story cringey like bad dialogue. It can ruin the flow and the fun of an otherwise creative story. In this post, I’m going to share some tips to help you teach dialogue writing in your next Creative Writing unit.

Looking for a done-for-you dialogue writing lesson? This one includes a slideshow, a worksheet for practicing punctuation, and an activity for writing a conversation. 

Teach Dialogue Writing Tip #1: Explain the Importance of Dialogue

Every student knows that a story needs dialogue. But they might not understand why a story needs it. 

Discuss with your students the difference between a scene with and without dialogue. Which is more fun to read? Which provides more characterization? 

This doesn’t have to be a long conversation–or you can have it while you complete tip #2 below–but it will help create some student buy-in. 

Teach Dialogue Writing Tip #2: Provide Lots of Examples

As you try to show students the importance of dialogue in a story, showing them examples will help tremendously. 

Find some great examples of dialogue and show them to students. Point out how characters’ personalities shine through their speech. Also note how boring or tedious the same scene would be without dialogue. 

It’s also helpful to show students some examples of bad dialogue. (Keeping old student work might be helpful here!). Let students tell you why these examples don’t feel as exciting or interesting as the good examples. 

Keep referring back to these examples as you move on to the next tip. 

Teach Dialogue Writing Tip #3: Go Over Conventions

It might be tempting, especially in a Creative Writing class, to encourage students to write fun or edgy dialogue and leave the mechanics for later. 

Don’t.

Bad dialogue that is grammatically correct is at least tolerable. Bad dialogue with poor mechanics is unreadable. 

Unlike the nuance of crafty dialogue, punctuation for speech can be taught in a day, so don’t skip it. Plus, this is one of those Creative Writing skills that help your students in other classes and areas of life. So don’t shortchange them. 

It’s not much fun, but be sure to go over the mechanics of writing quotes. This will help them quote and cite information in essays and better format everyday writing. 

Plus, when you actually have to grade those short stories, it will make your life easier too. 

Teach Dialogue Writing Tip #4: Give Students Tips for “Snappy” Dialogue

Crafting impeccable dialogue will take time and lots of practice. But that doesn’t mean you can’t help guide your students somewhat. 

Give them some ground rules for writing dialogue that moves the story forward. For example, let them know that they can skip the small talk. Rarely is there a reason in a short story to spend half a page letting two characters say hello and talk about the weather. 

Instead, challenge your students to always have a reason for their dialogue. Will this conversation help the plot move forward? Does it give the reader crucial information about the characters?

If they’ve already started working on a story, you can have them peruse their writing thus far. Are there any conversations that could be shortened or cut without affecting the story? Alternatively, are there any scenes that could be enhanced with some dialogue?

Teach Dialogue Writing Tips #5: Give Students Structured Practice

Finally, once students seem to understand the importance of strong dialogue and how to punctuate it, let them practice. 

There’s nothing wrong with giving students a worksheet to let them practice or review the mechanics of punctuation. Even if you’re teaching a Creative Writing class that’s supposed to be “fun.”

But also make sure to give students time to practice writing a conversation separate from any ongoing projects they might have. You could pair students up and have each write half of the conversation between two characters. 

In my Dialogue Mini-Lesson, I have students choose three strips of paper. One has two characters on it. The second has the topic of their conversation, and the third lists the activity they’re doing while talking. 

Students must then craft the dialogue between the characters. This lets students practice managing conversation and the movement of a scene in a low-stakes situation. (This scene won’t end up in a final story for class–unless they want it to!)

However you have students practice writing dialogue, make it structured. If you don’t give students a topic, characters, or boundaries, they’ll spend more time brainstorming than writing. 

Conclusion

Dialogue is an essential part of Creative Writing, and it can be fun to teach! It’s also a skill that can improve both a students’ creative and academic writing. 

Take a day or two to really focus on this essential skill, and watch the improvement in your students’ writing!

If you’d like a lesson and activity that’s already created for you, check out my Dialogue Mini-lesson!