You got some very good advice about using beta readers vs paid critiques so I'm only going to mention a few things. Writing is as if we open ourselves up to have every mean girl in the entire world come over to our house, eat our food, drink our booze and then spend four hours ripping our hearts out. You're looking at what will be decades of having people tell you what you write is garbage. Even when you're successful, have several books published, have been on a best sellers list, you're still going to be criticized. They'll tell you the topic is no good, your knowledge is lacking, and the list goes on forever. I have 30 years behind me and I got a letter Thursday telling me it was obvious by the cover on my book I'm an untrained newbie and I should never use the color yellow on a book. Honestly? Yellow? I didn't even pick the cover. I've been on the New York Times Best Sellers list numerous times but I know nothing because I have a yellow cover.

You need to learn how to distance yourself from the criticisms. Look for what you can learn from what was said in the critique or rejection letter then file that letter into a file for critiques or rejections and move on. If you agree with whatever they said, use it. If you don't agree with them then look the letter and say "idiot, you know nothing". Move on. Seriously, I really mean this, if you don't agree you're not going to do what they've suggested so why waste the time trying? But save all those letters because one day, if you don't quit you're going to publish and you'll pull those letters out & say "HA! I was right!" Then you throw them away. Or you can keep them like I do. And when an agent or editor tries to woo me from my publisher I look through the rejections and send a copy of their rejection letter back to them and say "I'm very loyal to the house that chose to invest in me". I once had an agent tell me I should never write another word. She was horrid, cruel and sadistic. Then after I'd published 15 novels she tried to convince me I would be happier with her representation. She never even thought to see if she'd ever rejected me. It was with great satisfaction that I got to say to her (in a public setting that she had accosted me in) "You not only rejected my novel and that novel reworked sat at #1 on the NYBL for four months, but you told me to never write another word. Big mistake pookie."

I've rambled on with all this crap because without my editor I'm too wordy. If you know deep in your heart your book is going to touch someone's life, then write it. Write it! Don't allow anyone to stop you. And actually I think the subject matter is one that our society desperately needs to have addressed by someone who has survived it. I sure can't write it so I guess you better do it. Write the book. Use a pen name. I use one. Actually I use 3 pen names and write in different sub genres.

Write the book. I'd buy it and I'd read it.