"In a rough draft, we are rarely economical: We repeat ourselves, we belabor the obvious, we cushion our thoughts in excess language. ... Long sentences are not necessarily wordy, nor are short ...

Most forms of writing involve description. For example, in a short story characters and places need to feel real for the reader. Description of events, feelings and atmosphere helps to achieve this.

Fourth-graders have a lot to say and their writing can become quite involved, but it is often a bit plain and doesn't give the reader a clear picture of what is going on. Using more descriptive ...