Whenever a sentence strikes a chord in me or a phrase makes me pause, I try to write it down. I collect these strings of wonderful words as if by doing so I'd slowly become a good writer, as if they're golden beans that would magically turn me into an eloquent poet.
Here are some of the pretty ̶f̶l̶o̶w̶e̶r̶s̶ phrases I've picked up lately...
"How true it is that words are but the vague shadows of the volumes we mean. Little audible links, they are, chaining together great inaudible feelings and purposes. Here were these two bandying little phrases, drawing purses, looking at cards, and both unconscious of how inarticulate all their real feelings were. Neither was wise enough to be sure of the working of the mind of the other." — Theodore Dreiser, Sister Carrie
"the dance of interdependence." — Jessica Baum, Anxiously Attached: Becoming More Secure in Life and Love
"islanded amid a crowd" — Olivia Laing, The Lonely City