How do you format interwoven dialogue, action, and narrative?

[SonicSouls]

I understand that you want to interweave dialogue, action, and narrative to have a balance in the story. However, what I’m concerned of is the formatting, specifically with dialogue. I’ve tried doing research and have found contradictory information. Here’s two examples I just wrote for this question. Which one is proper formatting?
Example #1
“Get off the couch!” Sam yelled. The cat leapt off the couch. Great, Sam thought, cat hair everywhere, and I just cleaned it. He went over and brushed the hair off.
Example #2
“Get off the couch!” Sam yelled.
The cat leapt off the couch. Great, Sam thought, cat hair everywhere, and I just cleaned it. He went over and brushed the hair off.

If the first example is correct, then when do you include action and narrative in the same paragraph as dialogue, and when do you not? Thanks.

 

[ckatt]

Hi there. Both of your examples are correct. It's just a different stylistic choice. Example #2 is a little more typical, but example #1 isn't wrong. When it comes to paragraphs there aren't hard rules. However, without more context, no one can say what is the better option here.
I'm not surprised you found contradictory information. But I would say the best research you could do is is grab a few of your favourite books and look at how those authors have done it.

 

[SonicSouls]

Thanks for the advice. I noticed that in my favorite stories that both formats were used so I did question if it was just style. However, you said that “However, without more context, no one can say what is the better option here.” Could you give some examples on that? I’m not allowed to post pieces for critique because I haven’t met the thirty post minimum yet. That’s why I just made up an example for the aforementioned post and just asked about formatting. Sorry, I’m not allowed to post some of my own work yet.

 

[ckatt]

Well a meaningful example might be hard since context requires more writing and I can't really make a story for this purpose and there are a lot of factors that might control the way you break your paragraphs. Pacing is one and drawing links is another.
So to use your examples
Example one might be better if the action moves in a different direction after this and the incident itself needs to be contained to a single paragraph. You have to look at the purpose of the paragraph in the first place. Was it included to show the beginning of a conflict with the cat or is this the third or fourth time he's yelled at the cat on this page? Or maybe it's a transitionary beat from one thing to the next that is merely foreshadowing a yet to come conflict in the book. You might also crunch these sentences into a single paragraph if you were looking to slow the pace at this point. But as it is a cat leaping moment you might be more inclined to speed the pace up. More paragraph breaks force the reader's eye to move down the page quicker, thus increasing the pace.

Some writers adhere to a rule of action-reaction units. In this style, a paragraph begins with an action and then the character reacts. When a new action begins so should a new paragraph. This works especially well for action scenes but in my opinion, it is less necessary for introspective ones.
So example one might be better if the character has a lot on his mind and the cat is just a distinction from what he trying to sort out in his head.

In the end, I think you just have to be aware of these things and be sure you have intention when you break a paragraph or choose not to. Whether that intention comes though or not is something you get a sense of with experience and the feedback of multiple beta readers and critiqueing partners.

 

[SonicSouls]

Thanks for the advice, and sorry that I couldn't provide personal examples from my writing. However, I don't want to violate this websites rules. I'm inexperienced and have been partially figuring it out as I go, but also doing some research outside. Personally I like using a combination of the first two examples depending on the context. For an example I just made up:

"Good kitty," Bob said. He smiled. "I'll pet you for just a few more minutes, okay?"

The reason I included the action in between the dialogue was because it was short, and stayed with the pace. However, if I had more elaborate action or narrative, I typically make that a separate paragraph because otherwise, it looks cluttered.

Thanks again for the advice, and I'll consider that in my writing.