Writer's Fallout Shelter

I took a really quick look. Noticed a lot of sentences ending with prepositions that didn't need to, but you definitely piqued my interest (not always an easy task, particularly as I'm headed off to bed around midnight). I don't think you have an impossible task ahead of you, because you know how to tell an engaging story (or at least how to start one).

Since I didn't read too far into it, I can only guess what you teacher meant - but one of my "fill in" problems (and a common problem among writers) is making leaps from one crucial scene to another without giving enough detail to set the scene or to logically explain how we got there. I know what needs to happen, so it's easy to gloss over details the reader needs to come along for the ride. Sometimes, I just want to get through some intermediary bit of action and get to "the good stuff." If you find areas of your writing that feel boring to you, or feel like work - like you're plodding through just to get on with what you know comes next - go back and give them a bit more attention. A little loving care, if you will. It's not all fun and excitement, all the time. If you're racing through some parts to get to others, that's probably where you need to "fill in."

Ask a trusted friend to tell you what doesn't make sense. Where you lost him or her along the way. Those are areas that need to be "filled in." Definitely ask the teacher to clarify those remarks. That's their job. The teacher will know, if you ask, that you care - that you're doing more here than finshing an assignment.

Never "just ramble on about scenery." Everything in your story should serve a purpose and move the story forward. Everything. Not everything is terribly, terribly critical, but everything should contribute to the reader's experience. I'd concentrate on character over scenery 99% of the time, if it's a choice. If your story is a "man vs. nature" kind of story, or the scenery is very important to the overall scene, then you have to describe it adequately for the reader. But the reader can fill in details; you don't need to describe each leaf on a tree. Action and dialogue are also good; they help to keep the reader IN the story, instead of standing on the sidelines.