I guess it's appropriate that I end this story just as the show itself wraps up.

When I began this story back in November 2007, I intended to write another piece where Lee and Kara get together. It was going to be the longest piece I'd written since college, with a planned twenty or so chapters. Now, it's March 2009, and I've finally wrapped up a sixty seven chapter story (plus epilogue) that spans hundreds of pages of Word documents, with even more that had to be excised and discarded as the story evolved.

"A New Start" was never supposed to get this long. But once I started working on the chapters where Lee and Kara actually get together, I thought: 'Now what?' Before this story, I'd worked on "Photos", a story that dealt with what would have happened once our pilots got together after the events of "It's All in Your Head", but that primarily focused on their happily ever after, and didn't provide a glimpse at the steps that would have been needed to reach that ending.

As it turned out "A New Start" provided me with the perfect opportunity to explore what an actual healthy relationship between Lee and Kara would be like as they dealt with the stresses of a life fighting for survival. And hopefully I was able to prove that the powers that be over at BSG didn't have to jerk our chains around when it came to our pilots for the sake of dramatic tension.

The expansion of the story idea also allowed me to address the supernatural/religious/spiritual aspect of the show, something that I never really liked. I know from comments and reviews left by some of you that I am not alone in this. It just seemed so incongruous in a show that purported itself to be sci-fi, and took over the general story without actually being able to make up its mind about what it was going to be. With this story, I tried to keep the show's religious vein integral to the plot, but anchor it with what I hoped would be a scientifically plausible explanation while leaving most of it up in the air and open to interpretation, much like what Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (coincidentally another show RDM was involved in) did with its approach to the Prophets and Pah Wraiths.

And judging from reader response, it looks as if I succeeded on that front.

I'm going to be taking a break from writing for this fandom. Between writing this story, and dealing with long waits between episodes, rather clunky acting and dialogue (despite all the critical raving), plot developments that seem more fortuitous than actually planned out beforehand, and RDM generally just being a pompous ass, I've grown tired of the show and haven't seen an actual episode in a very long time.

For now, I'll be sticking to "The Office," another show where the star couple had a hard time getting together. First because of her jock fiancé. Then because of the girl he started dating to get over her. All the while, there's that creepy guy who pines for our heroine.

Sound familiar?

My thanks go out to all those who read this, left comments, and put me and the story on their favorites and alerts. I would especially like to thank my regular reviewers (in no particular order, and my apologies if I left anyone out):

Anastashia

gatelover

Elliesmeow

StarryEyedGlimmer

Uberscribbler

arielmoondance

Aliennut

Maggie Moony

Entilzha

Denaliyasha

Airam4u

Serrafina

Baciami

Thank you, all. You made writing this story worthwhile.

If you have any final thoughts, comments, and/or questions, please feel free to leave a review or a PM. I'll respond in as timely a manner as possible.

Thank you for sticking with me all this way,

-MSK1701