That's seriously the best thing you can get as a writer. It stings, but you won't know what flaws to work on without it. It's sort of why fanfic writing (while it may be good to get in practice) is really ultimately terrible for your development, because most fanfic sites are a ludicrous hugbox where people just melt down when criticized about anything.
Oh definitely. Honestly, I was definitely expecting to get critiqued for my technical skills (which I still need to work on), and I knew the profesional world of writing wouldn't mess around. (Most of the time) I just wasn't expecting the editor I had to be so... frustrated sounding? It's almost like Gordon Ramsey scolding you for almost sending out raw meat. It stings quite a bit, but at the end of the day, you know he is right.
Since I last posted, I reflected a bit on the critique and realized that the direction I was taking the story probably wasn't the best way for it to go. I was going for something more experimental and I think the editor probably wasn't realizing what I was trying to do. As some of the problems he had were actually intentional on my part. If he did, he certainly didn't like it. Probably didn't help my technical skills got in the way too.
I realized that the way my story is either
A. Too ambitious for my current skill level.
or B. Interesting from a writer's perspective, but probably not palatable for a reading audience.
I have noticed that the stuff he didn't really cover or critique too much happened to be my favorite parts of my story. So, I'm thinking of just doing the whole thing over and taking a more simple approach focusing entirely on those aspects. Which is fine, I realize I'm still far away from publishing anything and I need to practice more. And just writing something regardless if you're planning on publishing or not is fairly relaxing for me.
It's hard to get published. I'd try submitting it to multiple editors and get more feedback. You don't want to rely on the advice on one person.
I would, but editors aren't cheap. Or at least this one wasn't.