3 each would be the best, pretty broad, but no impossibly so. I suggest cuting the abused/crazy, and making the otl a straight man out of the other 2 groups. Or cuting Slytherin Harry. Also, glad you calmed down. It's hard to swallow it, but admitting you are worng is an excellent first step. Standing up for your ideas is very nice and all, but being pig headed about something is not.

Also, I suggest giving Marauder Harry some of the indie cliches.

 

Thanks.

And done. As of now, I have:

Good:
1. OTL Harry.
2. Girl Harry.
3. Marauder Harry.
4. Slytherin Harry.

Bad:
1. WBWL Harry.
2. Azkaban Harry.
3. Death Eater Harry.

And before anyone says how the Good guys have the advantage, try to remember two of the bad guys grew up learning a lot of shit and one gets cool Azkaban powers.

Is this acceptable to everyone?

 

Honestly, dude, the only way I can ever see this work is to be a straight up crack fic. The problem with writing even a halfway serious, or hell, even a halfway not-crack fic with these types of characters in it is that I wouldn't be able to take it seriously. Like, at all. Hell, even just reading the words Marauder!Harry makes me want the author to go wash their mouth out with buckshot. But, hey, if you can think you can make it work, feel free to try. I'd give it a shot at least.

Also, is your signature intentionally misquoted, as in, from a story or something?

 

OP- here's a minor issue that you might want to consider before writing seven different versions of Harry Potter: unless you're going for crack, they all have the same name, so dialogue between them is going to be a massive pain in the ass to write unless you give them different names. And if you do that, don't you defeat the purpose?

Look, I actually think this idea has some worth outside of crack, but the second you're introducing seven different characters - all of which you have to characterize somewhat uniquely, which will get difficult because they're all based on the same basic character traits - you're not exactly making things easy on yourself. Start simple and build from there, and get comfortable with strong characterizations for a small group before taking this one.

Oneshots are really your friend in this case.

 

I really hope that you will not attempt massive series, but rather something that have chance for ending completed. Maybe oneshot for start, it may work as humor.

What does OTL stand for? My google fu failed (but now I know that OTL is a Korean emoticon).

On the original topic:

Azkaban Harry - http://www.fanfiction.net/s/1106246/1/From-the-Abyss

Slytherin Harry - http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3573787/1/Not-Slytherin-Enough

Also, anybody asking for feedback should have ability to filter and ignore part of it.

 

From the perspective of someone who tried the large cast (I had twelve main/semi-mains), don't do it. You simply cannot juggle twelve characters, develop them adequately, and tell your story without your word count soaring. Unless you're sure you can commit to that high word count, eight is much more manageable. This is undoubtedly the right decision.

I have to agree with a few of the opinions here: this idea will be challenging outside of comedy/crack. That said, write something. See if it flows. Post if it if you feel confident. Judge by writing, not by the opinions expressed here. If you can make it work, then that's fantastic. If not, at least you know.

 

I should probably remind everyone of a few things:

1. For the sake of convenience, they will have their own nicknames to tell them all apart, with the exception of OTL Harry (whom everyone agrees is the Harry-est of them all). More on that later.

2. I personally want it to be a Serious Comedy with hints of Crack.

3. Thank you to Bulwersator for being the only one (besides Lady CheddarTrek, of course) to actually suggest Stories to use as Springboards.

So far, here are the Characters I'm going with, along with their Nicknames if I came up with them:

Good:
1. OTL Harry (Harry).
2. Good Slytherin Harry (Evans, who uses it to spite the Purebloods and their tradition of using last names).
3. Marauder Harry (either Prongslet or Prongs Jr.)
4. Girl Harry (Harriet Rose Potter, or just Harriet).

Bad:
1. WBWL Harry (No idea).
2. Azkaban Harry (Hawthorne, after the author of The Scarlet Letter).
3. Death Eater Harry (probably an anagram of Harry Potter, but I have no idea how to start with that one).

If someone has suggestions for Stories as Springboards for the characters, Nickname ideas for any of them, or any other such advice, please say so.

Also, I hope no one says I need fewer characters. I already cut half of the original 14.

 

Given the use of ATL as its complement I figured out the first letter must mean original/alternate, and TL is probably timeline. Let's not make that A Thing though. Canon Harry is almost as short and conveys the same information.

Eh, you won't find universal agreement on which ones to keep. For a serious story I'd rather see Crazy/Abused Harry than your version of Wrong Boy-Who-Lived Harry. I realize that goes against your original idea, but the idea of a neglected twin is just ridiculous, no matter how terrible you try to make the parents.

Also, Girl Harry and Marauder Harry are by far the least developed ones left in this list, so that's an obvious merging opportunity. While you're consolidating you may as well drop her in Hufflepuff to provide more of a foil to Slytherin Harry. Canon Harry is going to be pretty weak in comparison to the others unless you give level him up a bit.

 

Force of habit. My first major Forum, Alternatehistory.com, got me used to things like OTL, ITTL, and so on. OTL, by the way, is Original TimeLine.

Here's the thing: WBWL Harry is actually necessary for the Story. He is the one who brought them all together in the first place (although the four Good Harrys were more accidental than anything else). I wanted to create actual context behind why they are all there in the first place.

As for Girl Harry and Marauder Harry, I did intend to keep them, since I already have fun ideas on their relationship (Marauder Harry hits on her, Girl Harry actually hits him in response). But I am, however, willing to merge certain things for the story. Girl Harry in Hufflepuff, for example, is a good move. I will think about merging the two, though.

EDIT: Screw it, I'm merging the two. Now I have a Girl Marauder Hufflepuff Harry. Most of the Girl/Marauder stuff could be done perfectly well with Slytherin Harry.

Meanwhile, I will add the Crazy Harry back in, bringing the total back to Seven (four bad, three good).

As for OTL Harry, he is going to be the Straight Man of the story. He considers all of them nuts, and all he wants is to go home. But you do have a point he's the weakest: perhaps I'll give him the three Deathly Hallows to level the playing field a bit.

 

Imo, canon Harry is pretty boss at the end of book seven, especially if you decide that he kept the Hollows.

 

Just write it, and post, rather than fish for criticism on an idea and characters that you haven't given a chance to develop on the page.

Seeing your execution of the idea would be more of a help than this list festival.

Even if it's only a thousand words, characterizing these alternate versions and providing a point to immerse the reader in your 'fresh' plot will do more than a list of cliches that push everyone's buttons.

Plenty of Slytherin!, WrongTwin!, and OhShitVagina!Harrys have fallen flat, and a few have been done well. Don't give up, or write it off as absurd until you try.

I don't like the name Rose.

Maybe Azkaban!Harry could be referred to by his cell number, or some sort of prison ID.

 

"It's my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V"?

 

The aspect I like about Crazy Abused Harry is the potential for unpredictability. With the other three "bad" ones you have their varying levels of madness balanced by either revenge (WBWL & Azkaban) or fanatical loyalty (Death Eater), but in order to avoid making your characters carbon copies of each other, you could have a truly, completely insane Harry. I could see him turning on the bad guys just as easily as the good guys, and maybe merge him with the idea of Monster Harry. For example, the Dursleys were somehow able to prevent Boy from going to Hogwarts, and ramped up their abuse for years, such that he has little control over his magic except to turn into a nightmarish, werewolf-like creature that finally ripped the Dursleys to shreds in his timeline shortly before he arrived in the WBWL timeline.

The other aspect I like is that your current character list doesn't have any drop-in canon character replacements. As fun as it seems to have a Harry that out-weirds Luna or outsmarts Hermione or out-metamorphs Tonks, obsoleting all the non-Harry characters would get old fast. And they all have enough differences in their motivations that you've got some interesting minor conflicts brewing between characters that are obviously going to team up, the most obvious being the use of Dark magic among good characters.

Anyway, just tossing out the ideas your posts sparked. The story in your head probably looks quite different than the one you've planted in mine, so do with this stuff as you will. I'm glad you posted, though, and hopefully you are still enthusiastic about the idea. I think it could be quite fun.

 

Roy the Prat
Trap theory
H Pretty Roar

Only Riddle was pretentious enough to use an anagram. The other Death Eaters went by their own names and the makers of the Marauder's Map gave themselves code-names, probably when they were 13 given the outcome.

Death Eater Harry might claim to be a lost Black and take the name Hydrus.

 

Azkaban:

The Prisoners of Azkaban. High levels of terribad.
Betrayed.
Harry Potter Mercenary.

WBWL:

Unsung Hero. The cliche-est of WBWL.

Marauder Harry:

This is war. Kinda, maybe.

 

Alrighty then.

First of all, while the idea might not have 'merit' per se, I'd like in principal to see what can be done with it. As said by Pers, nonjon's didn't quite meet expectations. With the right sort of enthusiasm and commitment to the idea, it could achieve what you're hoping to achieve by it.

However.

The keyword there is 'idea'. I have not as yet seen any. Do not take offence to this, as it is genuine advice and I'll be on board for helping/developing from here if you take it: what you have so far are devices, tropes and a lot of extraneous half-components. There is no plot that we have seen. This may well be deliberate on your part, but dropping 'this is my idea for a story' on a forum as ravenous for ideas as this is dangling sushi in front of a bobbit worm. Subsequently giving us only 'these are the things I want to do, in my idea' without giving us the idea itself is asking for trouble.

Worrying about how many Harry's there will be is just focusing on minutiae. It fundamentally doesn't matter. You have to give a reason for those Harry's to be there in the first place. You have to understand why they are there in the first place. They have to be strong enough characters for you to know they have a reason there, then be able to step back and discover, just as your readers are, what they're going to do next.

To that end, unless your story is rock fucking solid (which I doubt, since you've hopscotched over the characters involved at the behest of a forum full of half-informed strangers) that you follow Silens Cursor's directive, to some extent. Write each character, in one scene (or better yet some sort of prelude to their part in the story) in a short oneshot. Put a thousand words into each tiny role. Not for DLP, mind, but for the story itself. If you find one that isn't strong enough, isn't necessary, drop it, or find another role for it, or try again. That is the only way, imo. Equally, you will find things out about your own creations that go on to contribute not only to them, but the story as a whole.

What's more? Post the results. Listen to the critics. If you don't like DLP's responses, go somewhere else, but fundamentally they'll all help you. And, most im-fucking-portantly, they will help the story.

Put that shit first.

 

I, for one, found Dimension Hopping for Beginners fantastic, for the most part (that last chapter, damn), and the principle itself really interests me.

 

I should probably mention I already have a reason why they are all there in the first place. I mentioned that in the first freaking post!

But I suppose I should probably mention parts of the Plot.

They are there because the WBWL Harry wants revenge on his Wizarding World. To aid him in his goals, he summons six fellow Harry Potters to his World, with the unsaid assumption he will kill those who don't join him. Naturally, the three good Harrys who came (OTL Harry, Slytherin Harry, and Girl Harry) manage to escape.

The Plot will involve Conflicts between the Bad Harrys and the Good Harrys, along with the respective forces they have under their disposal. There will also be conflict within each group, like between Slytherin Harry and Girl Harry. Neither side will be a well-oiled machine, and the faults will be observed.

You do have a point with the need for me to actually write. It is a sad fact that I am a horrible procrastinator, even with RL situations.

I'll set a goal to start posting the story after the Jewish Holidays.

BTW, I personally liked Dimension Hopping for Beginners. Granted, there were scenes I didn't like all that much, but overall it was brilliant stuff.

 

Fun fact, you can write both before and after Yom Kippur without being a bad Jew... nor are any of the High Holy Days time consuming except the start and finish.

EDIT (to be more constructive) : I think you can pull the whole idea as long as you don't try to force them all into matching the cliches, we avoid cliches because they are overly simple and get boring fast. If you keep the same ideas but don't force the characters into being cliches it will probably be a lot better.

Also, anyone admitting an alternate version of them is more accurate makes no sense (therefore if six of them have nicknames, so does Canon Harry). You keep using Alternate and Original Timeline, but I personally recommend changing that to Alternate and Canon Universes.