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A paragraph is a group of related sentences that develop a single main idea or accomplish a single purpose. Usually paragraphs are part of a longer piece of writing like a short story or essay. A good paragraph shows unity and coherence.

A writer should change paragraphs when the scene changes, when the setting changes, when the idea changes, or when the speaker changes in dialogue. Many times students get lost in a large paragraph that would be better divided into smaller, more readable paragraphs. Remember, paragraphing and punctuation are courtesies to the reader, showing the reader how the text is supposed to be read. It leads to clarity and understanding on the reader's part.

For review, a paragraph changes when:

- the scene changes

- the setting changes

- the idea changes

- the speaker in dialogue changes.

Some information on this page was taken from The Writer's Craft.