Later last night I found a work-around, though I can't promise it will work for you. Switch to HTML mode before posting.

Also, you can see the paragraph breaks or lack thereof in the preview.

I did complain to LJ staff, by commenting in one of their news posts, before I found the work-around. I sure hope it helps!!!

P.S. One of these days, soon, I need to start your current story. Eventually, there will be comments.