] I always wonder that female writers used male pseudonyms.
> Perhaps there was a feeling that a masculine name gives
> weight.

The Bronte sisters published under the names Currer, Acton, and Ellis Bell, the first initial of the first name corresponding to their real first name (in other words, they were Charlotte, Anne, and Emily's pen names, respectively). I read that when Anne Bronte published The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, there were many rumors that the author was really a woman, but reviewers refused to believe that a woman could have written such a depraved character as the husband (sorry, can't remember his name). Much the same was written about Wuthering Heights, if memory serves; reviewers felt that Heathcliff could not possibly have been created by a woman. Charlotte outed them after the deaths of her sisters when she published a collection of their poetry.

I agree with Kika; I always felt that George Eliot, the Brontes, etc. published under male names so that their work was taken more seriously than that of most female writers of their time. Remember, Charlotte Bronte was rather contemptuous of JA's work (I'm a big CB fan as well but have to disagree there) and dismissed it as passionless fluff. I don't think JA had any problems on that score; she simply wished to remain anonymous.