On Writing

I signed on for a free on-line writing seminar over at The Phantom Professor blog. The first assignment was posted today—"Write a compelling sentence." Wow! What a first assignment! The further instructions indicate that it should be the first sentence of a story I would like to write and should make the reader eager for more. I've been reading a lot of Sci-Fi lately, mostly Harry Harrison, so I think I'll start in that direction. Here's my first stab:

As Thomas looked out over the wreckage strewn before him, he couldn't help thinking to himself, "How do I keep getting into messes like this?"