What do you think of BL Harem?

[Deleted member 40682]

I have the same problem with BL harem that I do with vanilla het harem: basically all the LIs very often tend to fall into very stale, archetypal roles because they're not given a lot of space to develop individually and in their relationship with the MC. They just fill the character type checklist -- princely, tsundere, jock, cold megane, etc. When you have one clear dedicated LI from the start, regardless of orientation, it's very often much more dimensional just by virtue of breathing room.

If you have the time and interest check out True Star it won't disappoint ;)https://www.novelupdates.com/series/true-star/

 

[Deleted member 40682]

Well. I read a couple of BL harem stories and most of them I didn't like because of the characters or the plot or that most of them (I don't know why) have angst and not because of the concept of BL harem... actually I love the concept.
An exemple to a book that did good for the genre is where the mc has a lover, its QT, and in one arc the ml spil to two and I don't know if that count as a harem but it did prtray a good exemple to how to write a BL harem (sorry, I dont remember the name).

Then I think you might like True Star, no angst at all, the MC is not the type to angst. https://www.novelupdates.com/series/true-star/

 

[Deleted member 40682]

Is it still a BL harem if the MC is het but none of the lovers respect that (non-con harem?)?

Does the MC end up with the lovers in the end? If so, then yes. It wouldn't be romance though, if there isn't any love and just non-con.

 

[Deleted member 40682]

BL and GL (harem included) are both not my cup of tea, but I keep an open mind about those genres.

So yeah, just write what you want to write.

Thanks for the lovely comment!

 

[Deleted member 40682]

It's not the lack of true harem that ruins it for me, though. It's the author's poor taste in men and inability to write a relationship with any romantic tension.

In all honesty, I pretty much never like any of the options presented - but the author picks the worst of the bunch, making the story go downhill from its already sea level standard.

Even 3P, which ought to be extremely good, is ruined by authors writing the love interests with no personality beyond "I want to ride the MC".

I have to agree, some BL harem can ruin the whole genre for people and just turn into self serving fantasies with just smut and no character development or plot. Check out True Star if you have the time and interest, it's the BL harem that sucked me into the genre and kept me believing.
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/true-star/

 

[Deleted member 40682]

Mostly because it’s not their cup of tea. But for those who love exploring other genres, they might find it interesting. Something new is intriguing, you know.

If you’re writing one, go on and let that imagination run wild

<3 thank you for the lovely comment!

 

[Deleted member 40682]

I myself write the stuff, so I understand you, dear friend. Many times I halt and contemplate about writing other genres and I tried writing but ultimately I realized that writing BL was something I enjoyed. And you should also feel the same. Not everyone is gonna like everything and everybody has a different taste. So, don't stop and keep exercising your fingers on the keyboard.
Check out my work, although it is not a harem but I hope you enjoy it.

Finally found you(BL)

I searched for you everywhere. But I don't trust you. It's ok, now that I have finally found you I am ready to wait until you are ready. The Alpha Hier of a multinational company encounters the love of his life finally, a cute and charming Omega who is the...

www.scribblehub.com

Ooh omegaverse, a guilty pleasure. Bookmarked!

 

[Deleted member 40682]

Well I had this one idea in my head, that's like, a harem (actually it's more of a love dodecahedron) on the surface, but it's totally a scam and the main character already has a boyfriend. I've never liked love triangles, they stress me out, so I thought of making one that totally isn't one.

As someone who was raised around monogamy, I have a little trouble with my reflexive reaction to harems, and I only find myself enjoying them under a specific set of circumstances. You could say I'm picky when it comes to harems, I guess. So to not only find something I'd like in the regular harems, but to narrow it down by making it gay, is far too troublesome when I could just look for other things I like more. To put it one way, the rest of the story is what I look for, while the harems are just the add-ons.

If there was a well done BL harem, it certainly wouldn't put me off from a story if I like the rest of it.

I'm quite picky too on harems, and have my own specific set of circumstances. Hmm, maybe I should add that to the main post.

 

[yansusustories]

Even 3P, which ought to be extremely good, is ruined by authors writing the love interests with no personality beyond "I want to ride the MC".

Maybe it's me who's just extremely picky but I actually feel like even a lot of 1x1 BL novels have that problem

You must not have come across a harem done right. I personally avoid manga and anime harem, the BL harems that I read are Chinese webnovels and there are some that are quite interesting. If you have the time and interest check out True Star: https://www.novelupdates.com/series/true-star/

True Star is actually a supreme example of why I wouldn't pounce on a BL harem: From what I remember (it's been ages since I looked at it), the idea was intriguing but I personally hated all the love interests. I slogged through quite a few chapters because I actually liked the MC and the rest of the plot but finally dropped it.

So, I think that for any kind of harem to be enjoyable for me, the characters would need to be likable. IMO, a lot of authors in the het harems fail to even give them a personality, and considering that BL has a lot of very questionable MLs on the best days, I don't really see BL harems working out that well (again: for me). I think I could enjoy a well-thought-out polyamory story but downright harem? Nah. I think I'd pass on that if the rest of the story wasn't really good.

 

[Deleted member 40682]

Maybe it's me who's just extremely picky but I actually feel like even a lot of 1x1 BL novels have that problem


True Star is actually a supreme example of why I wouldn't pounce on a BL harem: From what I remember (it's been ages since I looked at it), the idea was intriguing but I personally hated all the love interests. I slogged through quite a few chapters because I actually liked the MC and the rest of the plot but finally dropped it.

So, I think that for any kind of harem to be enjoyable for me, the characters would need to be likable. IMO, a lot of authors in the het harems fail to even give them a personality, and considering that BL has a lot of very questionable MLs on the best days, I don't really see BL harems working out that well (again: for me). I think I could enjoy a well-thought-out polyamory story but downright harem? Nah. I think I'd pass on that if the rest of the story wasn't really good.

*gasp* did we truly read the same True Star? But then again the translation is not completely translated and I read the original version in Chinese. So maybe the sides of the MLs' didn't come fully across? I admit, in the beginning all 3 of them were assholes but as the story progressed they did become more loving and loyal.

 

[yansusustories]

*gasp* did we truly read the same True Star? But then again the translation is not completely translated and I read the original version in Chinese. So maybe the sides of the MLs' didn't come fully across? I admit, in the beginning all 3 of them were assholes but as the story progressed they did become more loving and loyal.

Well, time's precious, there are lots of good novels out there, so if I hate the main pairing(s), I'm just gonna drop it. I never force myself to slog through something that's not enjoyable. Also, just being loving and loyal isn't necessarily enough to make a character likable for me. I actually don't remember that much of the novel by now but I still have an impression that none of the MLs (I think there were three?) had a likable personality as a whole to me. This actually ties into what @Moonpearl said before: Their behavior toward the MC is very important, no question, but I want something beyond that. If that isn't there or they are still jerks, then good riddance from me.

 

[Queenfisher]

I appreciate it in theory, but in practice it's...

Actually, most BL subgenres work for me in theory much more than in actuality. As in -- I'd love to see someone actually explore the ideology and mindsets and what it means to have a BL harem, personally or societally, (or ABO, or even mpreg) -- but most of the time, all these topics are left unexplored and are... just there for sex scene contrivances. To me, they start feeling gimmicky rather than crucial to the story, and I prefer to read something that goes in depth with its premises.

And if it's not going to actually make use of it, then I'd rather read something else. Thus, my turn to read never actually gets to BL harems.

 

[Maple-Leaf]

considering that BL has a lot of very questionable MLs on the best days

It's so true it hurts. Many MLs are so questionable you'd think they're rapists in disguise. I feel like enjoying a majority of common BL depends on how well you can ignore things.

I wish I could have some more fluff where the ML isn't a horny slag, but alas, miracles don't happen every day.

 

[Sabruness]

*gasp* a lost little yuri lover? But yes on your perspective on harem.

well i wandered in because, if you remove the BL and just look at the harem aspect you find many of the same problems that het harems can suffer from.

also, you need to learn to multi-quote my nibba. you can click more than one quote button at a time

 

[Moonpearl]

Maybe it's me who's just extremely picky but I actually feel like even a lot of 1x1 BL novels have that problem

It's an endemic, and also the reason that I fell out of love with the genre.

Harem is even worse, though, because the author's thin ability to write characters get stretched far past its capabilities.

This actually ties into what @Moonpearl said before: Their behavior toward the MC is very important, no question, but I want something beyond that. If that isn't there or they are still jerks, then good riddance from me.

Exactly. In the one harem BL I actually finished, the harem members were extremely nice to the MC. They were basically adoring, devoted slaves, all crawling on their knees to suck his dick.

But that was it. That was all they ever did. Horny 24/7 and there to provide slightly disturbing porn for the reader was their entire character, beyond a sad backstory that was thrown out the window as soon as they fell to the MC's ~charms~.

Harem/multi-relationship's only good when the lovers are genuine characters that you don't want to pour boiling water over.

 

[yansusustories]

To me, they start feeling gimmicky rather than crucial to the story, and I prefer to read something that goes in depth with its premises.

Funnily enough, I think that the fact that so few BLs bother to do that actually gives us lots of reason to write more novels. Not that we needed any Ah, I wanna write an ABO story ~

Many MLs are so questionable you'd think they're rapists in disguise

I happen to think that there isn't much of a disguise there in lots of cases But then again, I'd probably say the same about het romances if I was still reading them. Seriously though, I think I'm going to flip a table the next time I have to see the sentence 'punished in bed'. It's currently trying to ruin one of my favorite novels Like, the fuck, guys, it's okay if you wanna have sex, but please do it because you like it and not because you feel the need to torture the partner you claim to love.

Harem/multi-relationship's only good when the lovers are genuine characters that you don't want to pour boiling water over.

I really like the way you worded that

 

[Deleted member 40682]

It's so true it hurts. Many MLs are so questionable you'd think they're rapists in disguise. I feel like enjoying a majority of common BL depends on how well you can ignore things.

I wish I could have some more fluff where the ML isn't a horny slag, but alas, miracles don't happen every day.

I hate to agree but you're right. I would blame it on yaoi mangas that like to euphemize rapist semes but there do exist some really sweet semes and consenting yaoi. Still, I have mostly stopped reading yaoi and moved to Chinese BL novels. I have yet to see asshole MLs in the ones I've read though. Don't know about scribble hub BL but at least novelupdates have some really nice and fluffy ones.

 

[Deleted member 40682]

well i wandered in because, if you remove the BL and just look at the harem aspect you find many of the same problems that het harems can suffer from.

also, you need to learn to multi-quote my nibba. you can click more than one quote button at a time

:O I learned something new today.

 

[yansusustories]

I hate to agree but you're right. I would blame it on yaoi mangas that like to euphemize rapist semes but there do exist some really sweet semes and consenting yaoi. Still, I have mostly stopped reading yaoi and moved to Chinese BL novels. I have yet to see asshole MLs in the ones I've read though. Don't know about scribble hub BL but at least novelupdates have some really nice and fluffy ones.

You're super lucky in that case. Unfortunately, there are a ton of them in Chinese BL as well

 

[Maple-Leaf]

You're super lucky in that case. Unfortunately, there are a ton of them in Chinese BL as well

Super lucky? Nah that goes past the realms of inconceivable.