Thanks for the encouragement!

Positive feedback from a neutral beta reader (NOT a close relative) has been a lifeline to ensure I'm not crazy; I'm actually onto something good. :-)

Thank you! Insouciance is hard to nail down when you're dog-blind, but maybe I trudged through a bit.

Huge fan of in media res. It's my automatic go-to method to start a story. Sometimes I'm so fanatical about it I have to go back and add a little bit of grounding so the reader doesn't get lost.
Ha!

Not bad! We can definitely feel the tension and discomfort coming through. Strong examination of power structures that questions how much choice we truly have.

I'd struggle to make it funny unless I made it pretty unrealistic, I think. But who wants to read a dry, realistic court drama anyways?

I'd keep rereading it first.
Consider common elements of fiction and see if any ring true: pacing, tone, dialogue.
Is it awkward? Boring? Cringe? Naming the off feeling can help diagnose.
Or sharing it!

I can sympathize. Looking at my prose from a decade ago, I don't know if I could copy that exact style anymore.

However, writing is practice, and my current style is better.

But you're an editor! What would you think of your work if, say, I handed it to you?

I enjoy editing--I usually have to tell myself to STOP editing because I still have structural issues to tweak.

If I had to pick, I'd say the anxiety that while editing, I uncover a bigger, time-consuming problem along the way, like a giant plot hole.