How do you know when to start a new paragraph?

[JustRob]

If I find a paragragh too long, I look deep for a way to bring whatever into reality. When a paragragh gets long, its often full of bullshit wordage. But not always.

I tend to work this way too. I end paragraphs when the contents provide a clear opportunity to do so and then examine any that appear too long to discover why. I may have been too verbose or included more than one key idea in the text. In the latter case maybe I missed a less obvious point to break the paragraph, so divide the original into two. If several ideas are tangled up together and can't be divided in this way then I review my reasons for doing this. Was I being subtle or just confusing?

While writing this I noticed another good reason for ending a paragraph, to take another mouthful of coffee and pause for thought. No doubt the reader also appreciates that opportunity. They will want to stop reading at some point and it needs to be somewhere that they can pick up the thread of the story easily when they return later, usually the beginning of a paragraph. I write long chapters, each having the content and volume of text of a short story, so a reader is likely to want to break off partway through one. I have actually received exasperated remarks from readers who prefer to read entire chapters. If a reader is interrupted partway through reading a long paragraph then they may have difficulty picking up the thread when they resume reading. As writers we create a reading experience, so must always keep the reader in mind as well as the story.

[EmmaSohan]

Thanks Hero. It's a common mistake for me, right up there with they're and it's. I always have to check, I usually do.

[Bmad]

Think of a paragraph like the completion of a elaborated thought.
You go over your thought (subject) and then move on to the next.

[Theglasshouse]

So I read that Ursula K Le guin say in her guide that narration is when a change happens. If you can make the change happen often your readers will enjoy reading your work. The only problem with that is change is most of the time mental. Picture an alzheimers patient losing his memory gradually as the beginning of the story. It's elusive to define change for me right now. Any sort of external action needs a mental note that something changes in the characters life.

However some people I read such as seymour chatman say narration is superior to description. Because it involves more reader participation and is not static.

There are some elements to a pargraph but some points in this thread were describing narration. Description according to them should only be used when you really need it for narration purposes.

It's not easy to understand and I only own one book on narratology. A happening is the narrative term to describe something changing. Because of this, I want to learn more. I have been reading his book since I have problems connecting one idea to the next in a pargraph. When we say my brother was the adventurous kind of person in a story. You need to explore those assumptions because that is a static statement. Which means it can be expanded to a larger paragraph and your ideas flow even better.