It started Wifman Werman and Human. Human became man, Werman became man. Wifman became woman. The reason being that with the advent of industrialization, our views on the sexes changed. Women are born with inherent value, where as a man has to earn his value. A male was a gentleman, a fireman, a policeman, etc etc etc. Males became defined by their job or role in society. That's why calling someone a policewoman is silly. A female werewolf would be a wifwolf, although in modern society, we'd call it a woowolf.
You want to play around with gender perception, that's fine, but just understand what you are really saying. Words have meaning. the male pronouns are male AND gender neutral. We don't assume the default is male, we assume being male is unimportant.
A woman is a human being. A man is a human DOING. if he isn't doing anything, what good is he?
When guys get together after a date, what do they ask each other, "How does she look?"
When women get together after a date, what do they ask each other, "What does he do?"
Your objective is to 'use pronouns correctly'. Perhaps you should step back and ask, 'Am I using gender correctly'. There is how we see ourselves, and how others see us. People like it when things are clear cut, so we put people in boxes, not to impose our will on them, but so we can make predictions and anticipate behavior patterns. Everyone does, because you were born with the ability to see into the future. People WILL look at someone, judge if they are male or female, then put them in a box. Literally. Your brain has places for what it views as male and what it views as female. It stores the memory differently.
Pick pronouns based on the characters who view the character, but use them only when that character speaks.
The MC has a view of what they are, and that pronoun should be used for all 'narration' and 3rd person PoV. IF THE CHARACTER'S SELF-IMAGE CHANGES, then change the pronouns. This is a way of indicating that something has changed to your reader.
I had a MC encounter a dragon. I avoided using pronouns for most of the encounter until the dragon made it clear it was female. THAT is when I started using female pronouns.
When you are encountering someone, but the MC does not know their name, for females, you pick a physical description. Nice lady. Young Girl, Blue haired girl, etc etc etc. You keep doing this until the name becomes known to the MC, then you start using the character's name.
However, for MEN, you use a description of what they are doing, or where they are. The man in the corner. The courier. The man holding the briefcase. You use terms and labels that describe what he is DOING or what he IS.
When you mix these up, the reader won't notice at first, but I promise you, it will change how they view the character. If you describe a woman by her job or what she does, readers WILL describe her as 'aloof' or Snooty or unemotional, or even masculine, EVEN IF EVERYTHING ELSE REMAINS THE SAME.
To describe a man by his physical characteristics makes readers think of him as weak, effeminate, or even flat out gay. Again, it's been tested and this happens even if everything else remains the same.
There are rules to writing, like it or not. People expect those rules to be followed, or they will react to those changes in ways that may destroy the message of your story. If your reader fails to understand what you mean, IT IS YOUR FAULT. It is a poor writer that blames the audience. You are trying to speak to THEM. Respect your reader in trying to be as clear as possible and using words in ways that are expected.
However, don't feel like it must ALWAYS be this way. I am writing a story with Sexual morality reversed. I deliberately pick and choose how I describe characters who's names aren't known yet. I deliberately use 'what they do' when I want a woman to be seen in a masculine role and what they look like when I want a man to be seen as feminine.
Knowing how language works is a tool, but not a panacea, but if you want to get good at this, you need to know these layers because it is the difference between a good story and a GREAT story. It requires a light touch. Focus on perspective first, but also pay attention to how you want the READER to see things.
In the end, the message that winds up in the reader's head is the only thing that matters.
