Stereotypes, especially ones based on ethnicity or nation, are a delicate subject, to be sure.
To your credit, there are much worse stereotypes about the Germans and the French in particular- the idea that Germans are cold, unromantic, kitschy, have no sense of humor, and are all Nazis and the idea that the French are rude, unhygienic, lazy, and prone to surrender, are all stereotypes that are much worse and much more offensive than what you've described here.
This is not to say that "harmless" stereotypes aren't capable of causing hurt as well. To break away from the ethnic and racial stereotypes for a bit, there's a common belief that people with autism, while lacking social skills, are also math geniuses. While the idea that being a math genius is a good thing may make this seem like a positive, as someone who is both autistic and bad at math, it's always felt more like a slight to me. Likewise, the Dashing Hispanic stereotype (and his female counterpart the Spicy Latina) may seem complementary by implying that Latinx people are sexy, and after all, who wouldn't want to be sexy? However, this ignores the fact that there are many Latinx people who would rather not immediately be thought of as sexy- because often, being thought of as sexy can come with unfortunate side effects.
None of this, however, is saying that you cannot have characters who conform to certain stereotypes. At a certain point, it becomes very difficult to have a character who doesn't fall into one in some way or another- if not based on race or ethinicity, there's a strong chance they'll still fit at least one stereotype of their gender, economic status, sexuality, occupation, religion, or any other trait. Rather, it's meant as a precaution. Stereotypes live and die and what was acceptable in the fifties may be unforgivably offensive today.
Your being aware of the stereotypical nature of these traits you've described is good. It shows that you're a conscious writer who wants to take care to avoid Unfortunate Implications. So, here's a few things I can suggest:
- When writing a character who belongs to a group other than your own, do your research. Look to sources from that specific group if you can.
- Conforming to an aspect of a stereotype does not necessarily make them inherently offensive provided that they are more than just that trait. You can have a character who is a smart Asian guy or a black woman with an attitude, but the key to avoiding the stereotypes associated with those is to make sure those are not their only character traits. Maybe the intelligent Asian classmate actually doesn't do well in school because his intelligence lies more in emotional or artistic pursuits. Flesh these characters out, and you're left with something that's much more real. Perhaps your German character who holds his liquor really well also has a really good sense of humor, and maybe his amorous French wife subverts French stereotypes by being polite and not giving a damn about high fashion.
- Characters, regardless of ethnicity, race, or any other factor, should have both flaws and virtues. The key is balancing them out.
I'd recommend looking at Avoid Unfortunate Implications for more details, as parts of this are lifted from or at least inspired by what was written there. However, by the concerns you've expressed and the way you've described your characters, it seems like you're already off to a good start there.
Edited by Spottedleaf on Oct 28th 2019 at 2:29:03 PM
>^owo^<This may be a bit devils-advocate of me, but you can also keep in mind that stereotypes exist for a reason. They do often ring true in some way, even if they're wrongly applied to the group in general. So while it's best to try and avoid writing stereotypes, I don't think they're necessarily bad if they do pop up once in a while, because most stereotypes contain a nugget of truth. (Said truth may have been warped beyond reality and turned into something unrealistic and nasty, of course, so that is something to consider.)
So it's good to be careful and mindful about these things, but I also wouldn't beat myself up over it. Unless you decide to, say, have a group of Polish characters who are all blond and dumb as a board, having the rare stereotype pop up in an otherwise rounded and unique character isn't the end of the world.
Edited by WarJay77 on Oct 28th 2019 at 3:35:37 PM
Working on: Author Appeal | Sandbox | Troper Wall

I'm not all too bothered about me accidentally letting my characters have stereotypes of their nationalities to be honest, just that one day while trying to think of a prompt I then had the sudden realization that two of my characters who are husband and wife have at least one stereotype that follows their nationalities.
The first one is a German and his stereotype is that he can hold his liquor. The first time he did so was when he was injured and was handed a "painkiller" from his then-girlfriend after a fight; whereas he drank his first ever shot and cough, he then ordered one for his girlfriend who was slapped early on(causing the former to fight in a fit of rage).
She on the other hand, had difficulties gulping down without coughing very much (understandably this isn't really how alcohol works. I would try and retcon this if need be one day). But even if this isn't true, I did thought of a scene/one shot of them attending a party just to get out of the office. While the German takes shot after shot and goes down after he fails to land his last needle on a dart board, his wife looses her lips as to what she thinks of her husband's work condition and how he's treated after just a few shots.
Then there's his wife who is French.
Out of all the stereotypes I could go with the French, I chose the one to be the hornier of the two. I did write that they were afraid for a while after the accidental birth of their second child, (sometimes I frown upon myself at how much I write about these two in the bed) but later the husband suggests they'd try to have some fun under the sheets to try and see if it could make them forget for a while that their marriage isn't the best.
There is one more thing that I write about them though and their occupation than their nationality. It's the fact their police officers and while the problem is that one is a forensic entomologist and the other is the hard boiled detective that I won't go much into detail, the two enjoy a cup of coffee and there's nothing really wrong about that unless told otherwise.
Edited by Thecoldboringguy157 on Oct 28th 2019 at 10:17:46 PM