<p>We never had to write a paper longer than 5 pages when I was in high school. But I also went to a crappy rural high school with no AP classes.
So I can sort of sympathize where the OP is coming from here; if you've never been made to write papers like that, it can be a daunting task. When I first came to college, even writing college-style papers that were 4-5 pages were hard for me because in high school they were much less strict on the style and such of the paper. I mean, now as a senior, I can bust out a 5 page paper in a couple of hours and make no less than a B on it. I wrote a 10 page paper (12 pgs with references and pictures) for an archaeology class over one weekend and made an A on it. But paper writing is not something you are generally naturally gifted at, (some people are but it's very rare) it's something you have to work up to. You may make a couple C's or D's on papers before you find your flow.</p>
<p>There are the mechanics of writing a paper and then there's the love of a particular topic where you could on and on and on about it. If you combine the two, then the problem is the maximum page limit; not the minimum. The trick is to get in the frame of mind where you love the topic. Not always an easy thing to do but if you figure it out, then papers become easy as it is just an expression of something that you love.</p>