Add "First Paragraph Options" within Paragraph Styles
Feature Request:
Introduce a new section within Paragraph Style Options called "First Paragraph Options" (similar to how "Drop Caps and Nested Styles" works). This would allow users to define specific formatting rules that apply only to the very first paragraph in a consecutive sequence of paragraphs sharing the exact same style.
The Problem:
Currently, when a style is applied to multiple consecutive paragraphs, any formatting specific to the opening paragraph requires creating a separate, dedicated paragraph style.
A classic example is book typesetting:
- The first paragraph of a chapter or section should not have a first-line indent, while all subsequent paragraphs should.
- Long block quotations spanning multiple paragraphs require the first paragraph to have no indent, while the following ones do.
Creating two distinct styles (e.g., "Quote First" and "Quote Body") creates a major issue with layout automation: the "Space Between Paragraphs Using Same Style" option breaks down. Because InDesign sees them as two different styles, it applies the standard "Space After/Before" instead of the unified spacing, forcing manual adjustments or complex workaround styles.
Proposed Solution:
Allow a single Paragraph Style to handle the exception for the first paragraph. If the style is applied to three consecutive paragraphs, InDesign should automatically detect the first one and apply the specific overrides defined in the style (such as removing the first-line indent or adding a drop cap), while maintaining the "Space Between" logic seamlessly across the entire block.