The most elegant choice is to use a small, custom graphical element, but there are many options.
In novels and other works of fiction, sometimes you want create some separation between two sections of text – often because a lot of time has passed, or there is some change in the mood or the context – but you don’t want to start a new chapter. In such cases it is typical to have some sort of mark or symbol to create that sense of separation.
The simplest option for this is just to use one of the symbols already on the standard keyboard. Asterisks are a common choice – it’s quite common to see a line of asterisks – perhaps three, five, or more, possibly separate by spaces – separating two sections.
***
*****
Hyphens and tildes are sometimes used in the same way, but these can look very amateurish – as indeed can asterisks, really.
—
—–
~~~
~~~~~
An ellipsis – three dots – can look quite good. More than three tends to look a bit excessive.
. . .
An alternative to asterisks is the asterism, which is this character: ⁂. It’s just three asterisks arranged in a triangle. It is a rare typographical symbol that has historically been used to denote section breaks. It’s perhaps ever so slightly more interesting than punctuation marks on a line.
A short horizontal line is a good option, but perhaps a bit plain.
The most elegant option – and one which is very popular in novels today – is a custom symbol – something decorative. This can be anything you like, but it’s usual to choose something that’s relevant to the theme, style, or tone of the book. If you are writing a Regency-style romance, a small floral design would work well. If you’re writing science fiction, something angular and abstract is often good. It can really be anything, and using a custom symbol makes the whole interior look more enticing.
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