Last week, New York Times political correspondent Matt Flegenheimer suggested in a column that even though we have called Donald Trump the president for less than a year, enough scandal has erupted to fill a novel. Flegenheimer spoke with former White House staffers and writers to develop this idea, complete with scenes from the doomed battle of heathcare, a furtive meeting with the Russian president, and Trump’s eventual departure from politics.

As a community of writers and readers, we decided to ask our followers to join in the fun. We posted the article on our Facebook and Twitter, asking an additional question: If the Trump Administration were a novel, what would the famous opening sentence be? Their answers, brimming with both literary and political references, ranged from incredulous to biting to hopeful.  Below, some of our favorites: