Combining list and paragraph styles
When applying a list style, the underlying paragraph style remains unchanged; therefore, if your list must also have a certain font size, indentations, and so on, you might expect to first apply a paragraph style and then a list style (or vice versa). However, it is possible to embed a specific list style in a paragraph style using the Numbering page of the Paragraph Style dialog box.
This section gives an example of combining list and paragraph styles.
- Create a list style you want to use for the paragraph. For example: MyNumberedList.
- Create a new paragraph style.
- On the Organizer page of the Paragraph Style dialog box:
- Give the new paragraph style a name, say NumberedParagraph.
- In the Next Style drop-down menu, choose NumberedParagraph (this will make the following paragraph also be in this style, until you choose a different style).
- In Linked with, choose None.
- Leave Custom Styles, in the Category field.
- Set up the parameters of this paragraph to your liking. Because the indentation is controlled by the List paragraph style, do not modify this in order to avoid undesired interactions.
- On the Numbering page, choose the MyNumberedList style from the list created in step 1.
- Click OK to save this style.
To have full control, it is common practice to define three base paragraph styles for lists: List start for the first element of the list, List Continue for the subsequent elements of the list, and List End for the last element of the list. You should also define a paragraph style to be used for unnumbered list items (one for each nested level you intend to use) as well as an introductory style for the paragraph preceding the start of the list (to allow for keeping the introductory paragraph with the first list item, or for specifying spacing before the first list item that is different from the spacing between other paragraphs.