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Paradise Delayed [Bk 1 COMPLETE! / LitRPG]

Paradise Delayed [Bk 1 COMPLETE! / LitRPG]

by JW Gibson

ActionAdventureFantasyHigh FantasyLitRPG
Shadow rank ~#6563 in Adventure↓16

I'm taking a break through at least September and probably part of October, and after that the publishing schedule will be sporadic. I'm thinking less than 1x/week but more than 1x per month as an aspirational cadence, but we'll see how things go. For more info, see the announcement post here. BOOK 1 COMPLETE An epic LitRPG adventure in an infinite world... Andy Parsons died suddenly. Crushed by a falling piano. As his life flashed before his eyes, he realized that he was profoundly unfulfilled. Unable to enter heaven, he gets a second chance in a massive, multiplanetary fantasy setting called the Infinite Plane. The high fantasy realm features a System that governs classes, titles, feats, and spellcasting. As Andy enters the Infinite Plane, he quickly finds powerful friends who help him develop his skills and enlist him to fight against tyranny on behalf of the powerless. Join Andy on his adventures in the Infinite Plane in this epic saga! WHAT TO EXPECT: -Action/Adventure + Slice of Life. -Male MC -Weak-to-Strong Progression -Typical Fantasy RPG Trappings -Slow-ish Burn at First -Both Humor and Darkness (There are some Evil Villains in this Story) -Plenty of Cooking/Food Scenes -Eventually a Romantic Subplot or Two (No Harem, Occasional Fade-To-Black Scene, Not a Major Focus) -Political Intrigue -Violence (May be Extreme at Times) -First couple chapters make it seem like VR story, but this is not a VR story, I promise. -Approximately 2,000-2,500 words per chapter, though some go longer (especially early on) There is only one lead character. Over 90% of the book is written from the MC’s POV with occasional passages from other POVs to enhance the worldbuilding and plot. Other notes... Commissioned Cover Art by @Chuckwudiart A while ago, I published some exploratory chapters of this project using the pen name Echidna Plus. They've since been removed, but I noticed that some pirate sites picked up those chapters so I didn't want anyone to be confused. This is my original work, and it is the only authoritative version. April 2026 Writathon Winner

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Followers
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Story Timeline

Started

8mo ago

Tracking

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OverviewViews and follower statisticsEngagementProseChapters
Favorites
100
+2
FVR
0.49%
Rating
4.44
Ratings
47
0
Reviews
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Comments
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0
RS Days
0
Total Chapters
106
Total Words
0
Avg Length
0
Analyzed
0
Chapter Analysis
Word counts and prose metrics for each chapter
#TitleWordsFK GradeDialogueSSPVariation
1Chapter 1: A Young Man Dies in a Freak Piano Accident and Wakes Up in a Strange Place0----
2Chapter 2: A Talking Groundhog Gives the Protagonist a Brief Orientation to the Infinite Plane0----
3Chapter 3: Arrival! At the Dawnspring Cottage with some trusty Scholars to Guide the Protagonist0----
4Chapter 4: The Zero-Level Visitor0----
5Chapter 5: How did they get Pizza in the Infinite Plane? (Or: Who the heck is Bosshard Nandor?)0-
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6Chapter 6: Don’t You Think the Great Bear Could Easily Delete You from Existence‽0----
7Chapter 7: How to Simmer Perpetual Stew0----
8Chapter 8: Monster Manuals and Brawner Boots0----
9Chapter 9: Strap on your Boots... Training Begins! (Or: The Fable of the Benevolent Beast)0----
10Chapter 10: That Time a Cleric Used {Healing Rite III} to Mend a Visitor's Sprained Ankle0----
11Chapter 11: After so much Training, A Pleasant Cookout and Hot Bath really couldn't Hurt, could it?0----
12Chapter 12: Finally... Time for some [Combat]!0----
13Chapter 13: With Tyranny on the Horizon, the Vigilant Superior Begins to Put her Hope in a Visitor0----
14Chapter 14: Salt Makes Bad Food Good, Salt Makes Good Food Better0----
15Chapter 15: In Which the Protagonist Spars against a Student from the Firebrand Gym0----
16Chapter 16: Silk Pajamas and 20 pieces of Chicken… Noel Deserves it after slaying SEVEN Trolls...!0----
17Chapter 17: The Supreme Minister Plans a Birthday Bloodbath for his Favorite Captain0----
18Chapter 18: The Cheerful Enchanter Provides a Safe Room and a Half0----
19Chapter 19: Dissidents, Revolutions, and Enchanted Metalsmithing Apparatuses0----
20Chapter 20: Ledgers, Treasures, and [Martial Weapons]... Andy Makes a Big Decision!0----
21Chapter 21: A Basket of Twenty-Minus-One Apples for the Yarrowhite Branch of General Education0----
22Chapter 22: Sandwich Supreme in the Front Room and Texamalopalinias in the Back0----
23Chapter 23: On the Way to College Square0----
24Chapter 24: Even Lowly Adjunct Professors have Access to the Egregorium at the Enchanter’s College0----
25Chapter 25: The {Void Bolt} Shortsword Comes in Handy on the Way to Get Fried Clams0----
26Chapter 26: Things Move Quite a Bit Faster at the Firebrand Gym0----
27Chapter 27: …To Bring Freedom to Those Who Have None0----
28Chapter 28: A Good Coach Doesn’t Waste Time0----
29Chapter 29: Longsword, Shortbow, and a Job for a Wizard0----
30Chapter 30: Interruptions0----
31Chapter 31: The Balanced Blade - Finest* Weapons, Armor, and Equipment0----
32Chapter 32: Arriving! …at the Towermeade Basecamp for the Obscure Wizard’s Hirelings0----
33Chapter 33: The Absentminded Wizard Ficteh Speaks at a Shockingly Loud Volume0----
34Chapter 34: The Crew Arrives at Cavern Area "AD" and Begins their Dungeon Crawl with a Bang!0----
35Chapter 35: Gimme the Loot! Gimme the Loot!0----
36Chapter 36: Rib+Potato+Slaw+Pickle+Detritus=Yum (Nonetheless, Andy's Appetite is Nearly Insatiable)0----
37Chapter 37: They say It Takes Gold to Make Gold… But how the Heck do You Get that First Lucky Break‽0----
38Announcement: Scheduling for April and Experimenting with Release Timing0----
39Chapter 38: Andy Must Win This One (Or Else He Might Become Braden's Next Pact Experiment!)0----
40Chapter 39: It's All Fun & Games Until You Lose a Finger or Get Shackled with a Sigil of {Recall}0----
41Chapter 40: That Time a Cleric Used {Healing Rite III} to Reattach the Finger of a Thief0----
42Chapter 41: This Buttery Walnut Pastry didn’t Prepare Me to Face a Portal to the Demonic Realm!0----
43Chapter 42: Apparently, Not Even Demons Like to Do Paperwork. Can We Strike a Deal Off the Record…?0----
44Chapter 43: That Time Andy Accidentally Acquired a [Crafting] Skill Rank in the Name of Demolition0----
45Chapter 44: This Hallway Leads Nowhere Natural0----
46Editorial Update: New Epigraphs in Previous Chapters0----
47Chapter 45: The Gang has to Figure Out how to Get Out of the Psychic Spider’s Trap...!0----
48Chapter 46: A Game Plan for Maximum Power0----
49Chapter 47: I.Y.A.Y.Y.C.H.A.Y.W.I.L.0----
50Chapter 48: How to Negotiate a Patronage Contract with the Enchanter’s College over a Cup of Tea0----
51Chapter 49: How Many Times must you Reassure a Dwarf that he has the Best Shrimp and Grits in Town‽0----
52Chapter 50: The Knight of Aether and Air0----
53Chapter 51: On Finitude, Control, Virtue, and Freedom0----
54Chapter 52: [Devastating Radiant Strike] is only a Rare Feat‽0----
55Chapter 53: Heavy Armor is a Mindset0----
56Chapter 54: The Greatsword Requires a Bit More Coordination than other Weapons (&... A Delivery!)0----
57Chapter 55: Excellence0----
58Chapter 56: A Special Delivery from Sethor Crotias Himself0----
59Chapter 57: To Tear Down the Mighty0----
60Chapter 58: Ratabaka!!!0----
61Chapter 59: Gangan0----
62Chapter 60: Arriving at the Elemental Temple of Air... Some Elves Do Shake Hands!0----
63Chapter 61: Acrophobia! Suspended Several Miles in the Sky with No Way Down…0----
64Chapter 62: Hook, Chain, and Sword0----
65Chapter 63: Wind Spirit Express Laundry Service0----
66Chapter 64: A Six-Spear Salute on the Way to the Grove0----
67Chapter 65: Thunderheads and War Drums0----
68Chapter 66: Glory Must Be Earned0----
69Chapter 67: An Unexpected Invitation0----
70Chapter 68: Brim’s Grits0----
71Chapter 69: “You remember what you fight for. Now it’s time to fight."0----
72Chapter 70: Death Match pt. 10----
73Chapter 71: Death Match pt. 20----
74Chapter 72: Death Match pt. 30----
75Chapter 73: Death Match pt. 40----
76Chapter 74: A Twilight Dinner Party0----
77Chapter 75: We Expect Great Things0----
78Chapter 76: The Tomb of the Cartographer Mage0----
79Chapter 77: The Sacred Atlas of Verun-Tul0----
80Chapter 78: To Serve a Scholar0----
81Chapter 79: A Frog on Wobbly Stilts Serves a Mean Mushroom Sandwich0----
82Chapter 80: Marion the Sheriff Appeals to the Adventurers over a Round or Two of Cordials0----
83Chapter 81: Andy-Sir0----
84Schedule Change - T/Th0----
85Chapter 82: During Negotiations, You’ve Got to Keep a Calm Head on Your Shoulders0----
86Chapter 83: Down the Hatch0----
87Chapter 84: Frozen0----
88Chapter 85: The Blue Devil in the Basement0----
89Chapter 86: An Impulsive Choice with a Loose End0----
90Chapter 87: Paying Off a Debt with More Coins than One Person Can Count in a Reasonable Timeframe0----
91Chapter 88: The Vigilant Superior Casts a {Divination} Spell to Check Up on Things0----
92Chapter 89: Agatha Has Her Ways0----
93Chapter 90: Tower of the Behemoth pt. 10----
94Chapter 91: Tower of the Behemoth pt. 20----
95Chapter 92: Tower of the Behemoth pt. 30----
96Chapter 93: Tower of the Behemoth pt. 40----
97Chapter 94: Tower of the Behemoth pt. 50----
98Chapter 95: Tower of the Behemoth pt. 60----
99Chapter 96: Tower of the Behemoth pt. 70----
100Chapter 97: Tower of the Behemoth pt. 80----
101Chapter 98: Into the Western Wilds0----
102Chapter 99: Through the Eyes of a Zombie0----
103Chapter 100: Go Forward at Your Own Risk!0----
104Publishing Cadence Update0----
105Chapter 101: Ira and Wint Rinfeld, of Towermeade0----
106Chapter 102: Ancient Dwarvish Alarm Bells—----