Setting Paragraph Spacing Above and Below

You can set the amount of spacing above and below paragraphs.

How to Use a Style to Set Paragraph Spacing Above and Below

1. From the Content Explorer, open the stylesheet that you want to modify.

2. Complete one of the following sets of steps, depending on whether you want to use the Simplified view or Advanced view in the Stylesheet Editor.

   • Simplified The Simplified view displays styles in a grid view and is often best for brand new users.

     This view provides an easy way to apply properties to styles, with format options available from a toolbar and dialogs (similar to the way one would use an interface such as Microsoft Word). In some cases, only the most common property options are available in the Simplified view (e.g., font, letter/word spacing, paragraph alignment/indentation, autonumbering format, borders, background). One advantage of the Simplified view is that you can apply a property to multiple styles at the same time. You can also click a check box to hide the properties in the editor, allowing you to see only the styles.

   • Advanced The Advanced view displays styles in a tree structure, and despite the name, is user friendly for authors of all levels.

     For the properties, you can toggle between a grouped display and an alphabetical display. The Advanced view of the Stylesheet Editor lets you edit more settings than are available in the Simplified view. In addition, the Advanced view lets you see and apply settings to multiple mediums and media queries at the same time.

   Warning Mediums can be used if you want to use one group of settings for online output types and another group of settings for print-based output types. For example, you might use the default medium for your online outputs and the print medium for your print outputs.  From the Medium drop-down in the Stylesheet Editor, make sure the proper medium is selected before you begin. In the Advanced view, you can open multiple mediums at once; you just need to look at the title at the top of the medium pane and make sure you are working in the correct one. If you are not using stylesheet mediums for your different outputs or if you want all mediums to have the same settings, just leave the medium set to default and continue. Please note that Flare remembers the last medium that you used when working in the stylesheet, so it may or may not be the one that you want to use the next time around. See Mediums and Media Queries.

   If Using Simplified View

   1. In the local toolbar, make sure the first button displays (which means that the Simplified view is currently shown in the editor). If the button displays instead, then click it.
   2. In the upper-left corner of the Stylesheet Editor, click in the drop-down field and select .
   3. Select the appropriate paragraph style. For example, you can select the parent p tag, or you can select a class that you may have created for that tag (e.g., p.Tip, p.Note).
   4. In the local toolbar of the editor, click . The Properties dialog opens.
   5. Select the Paragraph tab.
   6. In the Before field, click in the upper-right corner and select Length.
   7. Enter a number in the field and use the down arrow in the lower-right corner to select a unit of measurement. See Units of Measurement. This is the amount of space that will be added above the paragraph.
   8. In the After field, click in the upper-right corner and select Length.
   9. Enter a number in the field and use the down arrow in the lower-right corner to select a unit of measurement. See Units of Measurement. This is the amount of space that will be added below the paragraph.
   10. In the Properties dialog, click OK.

   If Using Advanced View

   1. In the local toolbar, make sure the first button displays . If the button displays instead, then click it.
   2. In the upper-left corner of the Stylesheet Editor, click in the drop-down field and select .
   3. Select the appropriate paragraph style. For example, you can select the parent p tag, or you can select a class that you may have created for that tag (e.g., p.Tip, p.Note).
   4. From the Show drop-down list on the upper-right side of the editor, select .
   5. (Optional) You can use the toggle button in the local toolbar to show properties below in a group view or an alphabetical view .
   6. If you are using the group view, expand the Box group.
   7. To the right of margin-bottom, click and set the amount of space below the paragraph. When you are finished, click OK.
   8. To the right of margin-top, click and set the amount of space above the paragraph. When you are finished, click OK.
3. Click to save your work.

How to Use Local Formatting to Set Paragraph Spacing Above and Below

1. Open the content file.
2. Click on the paragraph that you want to modify.

3. Do one of the following, depending on the part of the user interface you are using:

   • Ribbon Select Home > (at the bottom of the Paragraph section).

   • Keyboard Shortcut Press CTRL+ALT+B.
   • Right-Click Right-click on the paragraph and from the context menu choose Paragraph.

   The Paragraph Properties dialog opens.

4. Select the Paragraph tab.
5. In the Before field, click the down arrow in the upper-right corner and select Length.

6. Enter a number in the field and use the down arrow in the lower-right corner to select a unit of measurement. See Units of Measurement.

   This is the amount of space that will be added above the paragraph.

7. In the After field, click the down arrow in the upper-right corner and select Length.

8. Enter a number in the field and use the down arrow in the lower-right corner to select a unit of measurement. See Units of Measurement.

   This is the amount of space that will be added below the paragraph.

9. In the Paragraph Properties dialog, click OK.
10. Click to save your work.

What’s Noteworthy?

What’s Next?

After editing a style, you can apply it to content in a topic or snippet. See Applying Styles to Content.