title: Can I escape XML characters like brackets that are contained within XML literal syntax of VB.NET?
body: <p>A while back, I asked this question:</p>
  
  <p><a href="https://stackoverflow.com/questions/11954701/does-vb-net-have-a-multi-line-string-declaration-syntax-equivalent-to-c/11954808#11954808">Does VB.NET have a multi-line string declaration syntax equivalent to c#?</a></p>
  
  <p>Here I was introduced to XML literals in VB.NET.  Using this syntax, I was able to simulate the multi-line string syntax available in c# using the <code>@</code> symbol.  However, I've come upon a snag.  It seems that putting <code>&lt;</code> or <code>&gt;</code> in the text does not sit well in the belly of Visual Studio.  Take this code as an example:</p>
  
  <pre><code>Dim Sql As String = &lt;a&gt;&lt;![CDATA[]]&gt;
                          &lt;text instead pointy brackets fails&gt;
                      &lt;/a&gt;.Value
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>Can I somehow escape these brackets or tell the literal not to care about it?</p>