How to set columns span for text comparison over two or more pages?

[mirkovise]

Hi.

I'm tring to to compare two long poetry textes over two pages using columns span but it not works.

I need that the first poem (blu) stay on the left column, and the second poem (red) on the right column, on each of the two pages. I could use more text frame but it's not a flexible solution.

Any idea? Thank you.

[Eugene Tyson]

Very hard to know what's going on there.

Can you give more details of what you're trying to achieve? 

[mirkovise]

It's very hard to explain too 😄 I'm trying to obtain the layout that you can see in the second screenshot within only one text frame per page using the paragraph styles, but it seems not to exist a column setting that allows the text in the left column to pass in the next page staying in the left column. 🤔

[Barb Binder · Accepted solution]

Hi @mirkovise:

This is a case of really needing the extra text frames, so that the text can flow: blue text flowing from page 1-2 and the same with the magenta. They can't flow side by side with column spans. And a table might look like a possiblity, but cells can't break across pages so that's out, too. 

~Barb

[mirkovise]

Hi @Barb Binder.  

Unfortunately extra text frames are not a flexible solution. But as I may understand it is the only solution. Thank you anyway. 

Mirko

[ibnabouna]

I agree this is the best solution considering InDesign's capability/limitations, but there is an additional limitation that is quite frustrating: footnotes! Assuming you are comparing two texts side-by-side and annotating them with notes, InDesign will number the notes the same across both columns (e.g., 1, 2, 3, etc.) That means one will end up with side-by-side columns with two footnotes numbered 1, two footnotes numbered, 2, etc. A big no-no for academic publications where the references need to be easily identifiable and accessible.