Is there any way for a paragraph style to indicate that the initial character or word is to be a drop cap?

For example, suppose I have styles BodyText and SectionHeader. I'd like for every SectionHeader paragraph to start with a drop cap, without needing to format every one. This is for the usual reasons of using styles: automatic, consistent, easily changed across the entire document (even eliminating drop caps).

I could probably do this in VBA. I've done a lot of VBA in Excel, never in Word, but I understand the language and the framework. I don't know if there is something like a "style change" event, or if I would have to run the macro after making changes. The latter would be acceptable.



Thanks,

Edward

Essentially, a Drop Cap in Word is a separate paragraph set as a Frame.

• Frames and Textboxes in Microsoft Word

Frames can be a part of a style's definition.

Thanks, I will study this ... but it sounds like the answer is no, since if the drop cap is a separate paragraph, then it's not part of the main paragraph, so is not part of the main paragraph's style.

You are correct. You can create a Drop Cap style, but it will only be for the Drop Cap part. You can select what you want treated as a drop cap and use the Drop Cap button, or if you have such a style, apply it to that with a Style Separator to combine the text.