The following steps will help you to create a Visual Studio project:

1. Open Visual Studio.
2. Create a C# project.
3. Select Class Library from the project template list.
4. Name the project to match the DSC resource you are creating (in this case, it's xExampleThing).
5. Click on OK.
6. Once the project has loaded, add a reference to System.Automation.Management.dll in your project from the GAC.