A method for placing an insertion point in an electronic document in an electronic system for creating and editing an electronic document. Context information regarding a location of a cursor in the electronic document is collected. A coinciding rule is selected from one of a number of rules based on the collected context information. In response to selecting a coinciding rule, the cursor is changed to indicate an anticipated location of the insertion point and the associated formatting rules to be applied. A determination is made whether an indication has been received to place the insertion point in the electronic document, and, if so, then formatting is performed to place the insertion point in the electronic document.