There are some male writers who think that a woman will not finish a project so women are painted that way. Often a woman is described as someone looking for help from a man because she cannot finish a job on her own or by herself. Or the story will go on, but the woman will never be shown reaching her goal. What we forget is that a woman does several things at the same time. She multi-tasks all the time. A woman takes longer to finish something, but she finishes it. Men often do not perceive how a woman will do a job or why she needs to think about which way to do it. Often women think about the task and what the task involves (such as protecting the environment or making sure there is no chemicals that will hurt her children). The men often just get it done. This seems like the woman is taking forever or will not finish the task. Sometimes women will find obstacles on their way such as prejudices or cultural norms that men do not have to face. Women are often poorly respected in the professional world. Often people do not answer a request from a woman but will answer a man, which creates delays and unnecessary physical and psychological strains on the woman.
Women may be portrayed as sexual creatures because some men think that women only think of seducing men or they may think that to have a seductive woman in a book will appeal to other men. No wonder so many ads for cars have half-naked females crawling all over them. Their fantasies have no boundaries. Also, contrary to many novels, women do not spend their time talking about men or TV shows or beauty products.
Women are often beautiful and very feminine in novels written by men. They seem to forget that a scar or a tattoo in a woman can say more about her than her beauty or her IQ. And then, there is also the inner beauty that is rarely exposed or if we talk about it is to show a naive woman. To have an inner beauty is not synonymous with weakness.
Men writers might describe women in details by emphasizing their generous curves. A woman would not describe her tube dress that brings out her breasts. No! A woman might try to hide her breasts to make herself more androgynous and be more respected, on the contrary. A woman too can dress a certain way because she feels beautiful, not for others (meaning men), but just for herself.
Women do not evolve intellectually in many novels written by men. Their goals are also superficial or inconsistent or motivated by passionate love. In fact, women are rarely described with a brain or having achieved a goal that leads to something more grandiose. Often women are described as passive or passive-aggressive. They are seen as people who miss the point. Well in real life many women have revolutionized teachings (Maria Montessori and many others), science (Marie Curie and many others) or the laws (the Suffragettes or the many women at the base of the desegregation), etc. Where are these women in literature?
Women are often painted as weak and co-dependent creatures because they are often relegated to the roles of wives and mothers. Few men recognize that raising children is a challenge. Often women are very enduring and need inner strength to survive. A woman is more resistant to physical and intellectual penalties so they can walk long distances and endure abuses that men could not bear. Think of the sufferings of slaves. If they can appreciate the protection of a man, that does not mean that they have no resources.
Women talk a lot and gossip or so would some male writers make us believe. Well, men speak more than women in general, but they value themselves and their knowledge while a woman is more centered on others than herself.
A woman is written as a man with a skirt so the writer describes her as having no heart and with almost super natural powers. Clichés are the easier way to write women for some.
Many woman in novels are portrayed as looking for safety in any way you can think of. A woman seeks safety for herself, for her children, or for the people she loves. Security can be financial security, a shelter, or a person. Imagine a person confronting a wave. When the wave goes to her, she runs away to hide, but when the wave recedes, the person throws stones in the wave or studies this wave. After some time, the person returns to the wave stronger and with more courage. A woman is a bit like that. A woman studies her target, her goal, or her map before leaping. A woman may take more risks, but calculated risks. She has more at stake. She has more to lose because society will forgive less to a woman. If a woman loses her virginity, she will be treated as a whore. If a man loses his virginity, he will be praised. A man will not ask a passerby for advice, but a woman will not have a problem with that. Women have succeeded in the past by their sociability. A man will launch himself firmly by following a strategy that has worked for him in the past or a strategy he has seen other men use successfully. He knows many doors will be opened. He will cross the door that can open. A woman will try all the roads that lead to Rome because she knows many doors will be closed. Also what interests her is not to arrive, it is how one gets there and what is on the road.
A woman wants to serve others and ease their pains. She can take big risks to reach her goal. A woman will write books for her children, for their education, for them to learn but a man will do it more to value himself or to be loved. A man will be more likely to write something humorous that values him and gives him a cool daddy status. A woman will be more likely to write something practical, so that her child develops a love for reading, or an adventure that uses some knowledge.
In novels written by men, often women have no sense of humor. Women are witches or angels. There is no room for complexity or humor.
To describe a woman, one should take into account the norms of culture and what a woman is allowed and especially not allowed to do. A woman will try to express herself with the means she is given, with the tools she can use. When does the action take place (in the future or in the past?), where (in which country, continent, planet?) and what is the role of this woman in society (nun, nurse, head of police, wife of a politician, leader of a village or gang?). You should create a list of things that women are asked to respect. What does apply to women in particular? For example, are there places where men are the only people to be admitted and why? If a woman broke this taboo, what would happen? What does she have to lose? If we forbid a woman to speak in public (as it was the case in the US for a very long time), we should know how a woman can express herself without breaking the codes. Maybe this woman writes or organizes evenings between women to talk about important subject. Think of Malala who created a girls' school in secret, or women who wrote under a man's name like George Sand. Think of queens as Cleopatra, both powerful and powerless. Think of the queens who reigned in the shadows, Queen Elizabeth who created new laws that were thought impossible to change. If women are forbidden to do anything, how can these women get what they want without being punished? How do these women look like your mothers, sisters, wives?
Culturally, a woman may have been conditioned to consider herself as "unworthy", "unable to reach" something or a position. It's not the same as not being able to do it or get it. Women are more interrupted than men. Women are often thought of as someone who counts less or who deserve less. They are often regarded as the tag along, as the one who follows. Women are rarely thought of as entrepreneurs and revolutionaries. This can influence her psychology. This may make a woman appear more obedient. It can also make a woman angrier and more rebellious. Often the obstacles are people and their prejudices.
To write a woman is to study society and the century in which she lives. Then, find what motivates her (what gives her a sense of security or who she wants to protect, and what service she wants to give back to the world). Finally, it is to find the means or strategies she uses to bypass the culture’s expectations of her and the obstacles put in her way. These strategies may well include seducing a man or passing for an idiot or even using someone’s influence rather than direct means. But we must not confuse what women are forced to do and their nature. This needs to transpire on the paper.
Finally, you need to listen to this excellent analysis for more inspiration.
Real (meaning scientifically based) differences between males and females.