Copying sentences

 I think I mentioned that I have been copying some of Aldo Leopold’s sentences into my notebook.

If a young writer asked for advice, I think that’s what I’d say: Find a writer you admire and copy a few sentences. Just try it.

One thing you’ll notice while copying: If the sentence is short, you can hold it in memory from printed page to notebook page. Here’s an example from Leopold:

 

The wielder of an ax has as many biases as there are species of trees on his farm.

 

Those 18 words got from book to notebook without any back and forth. It says a lot — that bias involves something you do, rather than simply think. If you love pine, you’ll cut other trees for firewood.

I’m a great admirer of Sir Thomas Browne, but I can’t remember his sentences. The great opening sentence of Religio Medici is 212 words, if my faulty memory serves. It’s an anthem, rather than a sentence.

This might not mean anything to you. But it’s part of my aesthetics. Things that can be held in memory, including sentences, have an advantage.

• Source: Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac; New York: Ballentine Books, 1982, p. 75. If all this sounds familiar, see my father’s advice on writing, “A very short conversation,” Aug. 1, 2022.