Question how many members of a harem is too much

Discussion in 'Novel General' started by mja, Nov 10, 2017.

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how many is too many

  1. 2

    31 vote(s)
    18.0%
  2. 3

    15 vote(s)
    8.7%
  3. 4

    23 vote(s)
    13.4%
  4. 5

    30 vote(s)
    17.4%
  5. 5s

    14 vote(s)
    8.1%
  6. 6+

    21 vote(s)
    12.2%
  7. x

    19 vote(s)
    11.0%
  8. to infinity and beyond

    58 vote(s)
    33.7%
  9. GET YOUR HEAD OUT OF YOUR ASS YOU CIS GENDERED CHAUVINISTICK WHITE MALE PIG

    28 vote(s)
    16.3%
Multiple votes are allowed.
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  1. mja

    mja Well-Known Member

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    I'm a dumbass and whenever I write something I end up introducing way too many love interests how many is too much and would you be fine for something like mc gets with a girl then forgets about her or like a one night stand or do you prefer he takes responsibility for every girl he sleeps with?
    (please do not misunderstand this humble writer is a piece of shit so there is no need for lectures and morals in this thread so you can be a piece of shit with me.
     
    Lonelycity likes this.
  2. ShimizuA

    ShimizuA the best teacher is Life.

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    4 is the max.1 for each limbs
     
    Lonelycity likes this.
  3. chencking

    chencking [Daolord Grammar Nazi]

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    One night stands are okay. Forgetting a girl he had a one night stand with is okay. But if the girl hangs around or he developed a relationship with the girl, they'd better stay in the story and better be well-written, or someone will notice.
     
  4. Jigoku Shounen

    Jigoku Shounen An Envoy From Hell

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    If every of the harem members are good characters, then there is no limit really. It's only because Xianxia "Harem" is never a "Harem" in the 1st place.
     
  5. Qvintex

    Qvintex Well-Known Member

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    7 is a limit. 3-4 the most optimal.
     
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  6. majestikat

    majestikat Well-Known Member

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    You're forgetting a limb
     
  7. Vyren

    Vyren Version 3.33

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    Three is just about right if you’re an amateur and your story isn’t romance based. Experienced authors like Tokia can make it up to crazy numbers like 7 while romance based stories like To Love Ru or Kaminomi can get to like 12 people.
    Even 3 is a strech but if you really must, then aim for that number.
     
  8. Okuri Ookami

    Okuri Ookami 'Chi Chi Chi' calls the Sparrow

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    4 is the max. I'd prefer if 2 out of the 4 if not 3 would only considered the Male lead ( or Me if I put myself as the MC) as a friend rather than a lover and preferred women over men... Also harem doesn't just apply to cis genders or men. Harems are groups of people that love one person or each other it has nothing to do with if you identify as a male be it gay straight, demi-sexual, heteromantic, or otherwise. Women can have harems, tran's, bi's, and other...

    That last option should only be picked if your a feminist and believe every root cause of something viewed as bad is automatically the fault of a man. These types hurt their cause more than help it... and have a poisonous mind set that I can't take serious. Equality in everything even in harems!
     
  9. Avil

    Avil Well-Known Member

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    If it's a fake harem 1 is more than enough, after all the hero will date the horrible tsundere so the other girls are just there for the fanservice but true harems are good with 5-6 girls, I think that number is enough to have them constantly present in the story without dropping them after the conquest.
     
  10. Raneday

    Raneday Not Rane

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    6 one for each day? And the last day is a day off?



    but tbh what's more important is how well made the characters and how would you deliver the relationships with each one

    Best example that I could give you is Sevens even though I don't like harems, I liked the one here since you'll love each of the character
     
    Nino Sasou likes this.
  11. tahzib1451

    tahzib1451 Title?is it food?

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    like the old saying 3 is a crowd....
     
    Sharudeis likes this.
  12. static7s

    static7s [Lightning Origin Slime][Void Prince][Zappy Doom]

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    Shouldn't that be at least 6?
     
  13. Xane

    Xane Well-Known Member

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    Honestly I think 2 or 3 is best. More and most authors fail to juggle the girls or just make the MC move on to something else while leaving some (or all) behind.
     
  14. Shance

    Shance 『Trying to evade the wall in the front』『Failing』

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    How about a triangle? You could make a good rivalry when there are three people in a relationship, more than that and it's difficult to make work without havoing them scheem against each other or becoming robots.
     
    craz and lohwengk like this.
  15. Upheaval

    Upheaval Well-Known Member

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    If I were to write a harem novel, I would make 3 heroines at maximum. In RPG terms, a healer, a front hitter and a long range one. Sorry I read too much isekai novels!
    What I mean is that you need heroines who are different and help the protagonist in each situation, when needed. So a heroine who is a good housewife, one who is of equal standing in the battlefield with the protagonist, and one who is a bit of both. Look at Mushoku tensei. Rudeus has a wife who is the one who take cares of the house, the wife who is a swordswoman and the wife who is his teacher and a mage.
     
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  16. jersanxx1

    jersanxx1 『Lost Toy』『Mostly Lurking』

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    Well, If the [Harem Members] won't devolve to [One-Dimensional "Braindead" Personality] or [Collectible] Harems, I won't mind how many it is. As long as they deserve their position, not just a Figurine-esque Member. Also, with enough appropriate screen time to develop their characters.

    There was a Great Wiseman once said : "There's no enough Harem in a story. However, having overconfidence in capacity is like driving an overloaded Bus, prone to accidents". There really is no "enough", you even fly like Buzz Lightyear for Pete's sake. As long as you can handle it properly, then it'll be just fine.
     
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  17. ElDaniWar

    ElDaniWar Well-Known Member

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    For my three is the maximum, more than that only spoils the romance, I really have not read good harem stories where the romance is really good. The exception would be A Third Path to the Future and that's a fanfic... the romance is built little by little and it's a little slow, but in the end it's worth it, it's quite satisfying when they finally come together.

    Another thing that I can tell you is the following:

    I like harem, but there is simply not almost any that is really good.
     
  18. Sircus

    Sircus [Well-Known God]

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    Soo, your question is; "How many people is one person allowed to love at the same time?"

    Dude, I hope you don't get too many kids since this kind of thinking would force you to ration the amount of love you have for them. On Monday I love kid 1 and on Tuesday I love kid 2. The real answer is that one can love as many people as you have energy for and that´s probably bordering on a max 30+ ish limit according to psychology.

    However, don't take it as everybody has that huge capacity for love. Some are just cold insensitive bastards.
     
  19. Nino Sasou

    Nino Sasou 『 ******** 』『 On Paid Leave』

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    Like most jp harem is never harem because mc is beta and lack of carnivore love interest
     
  20. TypeFantasyHeart

    TypeFantasyHeart Well-Known Member

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    that will depend if the author does a good job developing the romance between all the girls and develop their characters to be unique
     
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