I think the dearth of good female characters in fanfic is a direct descendant of the dearth of good female characters in mainstream media. And I'm puzzled by the discussion of female chars in m/m slash, given that there's been significant discussion of how the men in m/m slash are often coded women who behave very little like "real" gay men and much more like women.

Anyway. It's kind of sad that our extended friends are, in fact, an atypical bubble of writers, but it's nice for us.