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A new paragraph indicates a change, as in speaker, action, place, or time.
Related sentences should vary in length.
Examples in this post (except the business letter) are from my unpublished book, Escape to a Better Tomorrow.
The sentences should all relate to each other in the same event or action or description.
Shorter paragraphs tend to be more readable on smaller electronic devices.
For most paper books and magazines, the first line of each new paragraph should be indented with no blank line between.
Business letters and online stories/articles/posts do not usually indent the first line. Instead, as in this post and many others you will find, a blank line follows each paragraph.
This lets the reader know that a different person is speaking.
In the morning, Cherry found the lady in the fairgrounds’ office. “I left my horse here last night. Fed him my hay, but I did spread out some of your bedding. What do I owe you?”
“I spotted the trailer, so I figured there would be a horse visitor. No problem. We don’t have anything going on right now, so there’s plenty of room.”
The horse’s lodging cost considerably less than her motel room.
“Maybe I’ll stay with my horse next time! … If there is a next time.”
In the morning, Cherry found the lady in the fairgrounds’ office. “I left my horse here last night. Fed him my hay, but I did spread out some of your bedding. What do I owe you?”
“I spotted the trailer, so I figured there would be a horse visitor. No problem. We don’t have anything going on right now, so there’s plenty of room.”
The horse’s lodging cost considerably less than her motel room.
“Maybe I’ll stay with my horse next time! … If there is a next time.”
The closing quotation marks should not be included until the speaker stops. The final quotation mark indicates the end of all that is related to the same speaker.
Just as he was heading for the pickup, Uncle Oscar stopped him. “Want to spend the night here? Would it help to have some company?
“I’ll bet Tom would feed for you. … I … I’ve been through this myself, a long time ago. It’s no fun.
“Your dad and I grew up in the same situation. Your grandfather quit before you were born, but that didn’t help me or your dad. We kept it up, just as you have.
“When I proposed to Auntie Irene, she put her foot down. Only if I quit drinking. She was not going to raise kids that way. You probably wouldn’t remember that because you were just a toddler.”
(Each paragraph has an opening quotation mark. The closing quotation mark is only at the end of what is spoken.)
(Each paragraph has an opening quotation mark. The closing quotation mark is only at the end of what is spoken.)
Just as he was heading for the pickup, Uncle Oscar stopped him. “Want to spend the night here? Would it help to have some company?
“I’ll bet Tom would feed for you. … I … I’ve been through this myself, a long time ago. It’s no fun.
“Your dad and I grew up in the same situation. Your grandfather quit before you were born, but that didn’t help me or your dad. We kept it up, just as you have.
When I proposed to Auntie Irene, she put her foot down. Only if I quit drinking. She was not going to raise kids that way. You probably wouldn’t remember that because you were just a toddler.”
(Each paragraph has an opening quotation mark. The closing quotation mark is only at the end of the last paragraph of what is spoken.)
A paragraph that takes up an entire page will slow down the reading. Too many long ones will discourage the reader.
The key to writing a good paragraph is to keep all the sentences related to a single action.
For paper, an indentation identifies a new paragraph. (Business letters often use the extra line method.)
At the end of the lane, she turned north, not looking back. The long-sleeved checkered shirt she wore with her jeans provided ample warmth, so she rolled down her window. Her teeth clenched as she rubbed her cheek. The coloration of the bruise had disappeared, but the memory remained.
“Rowdy, you won’t hit me again. Montana, here we come.”
At the rest stop, she yanked out her cell phone, pocketed the battery, and dropped the shell into the dumpster, using a stick to stir the trash over it. The pieces of credit card she had cut up followed the phone.
“Whew! Smells like somebody threw away some rotten meat. Nobody will dive into this one! He won’t be able to find me through the phone or the card.” She would dispose of the battery somewhere else, somewhere appropriate.
She tossed the stick and sniffed her hands. “Yuck. I should have found a longer stirrer.”
This takes more space, as a blank line is added after each paragraph.
Example:
Dear customer:
Thank you for your interest in our new gadget designed to wash your dishes remotely. We have spent many hours in its development.
Your question was how remote “remotely” means.
Our earliest version of WYDR (“Wash Your Dishes Remotely”) required the person to be located within a distance of no more than 300 feet. That was convenient for anyone still in the house or in a back or front yard.
The newer WYDR allowed the person with the remote control to be within a mile of the device, allowing someone who forgot to turn on the dishwasher to operate it from well beyond the driveway.
Our newest control, with the help of NASA, allows the operator to start the dishwashing process from any planet in the solar system. While this may seem like an extravagant claim, we have tested it from the International Space Station. Please inform us if you are going beyond that.
If you have further questions, feel free to call us at (555) 555-5555.
Sincerely,
Jane Doe
Jane Doe
Manager, WYDR
Credit: Photo by Dimitri Houtteman on Unsplash