Armed and Dangerous: A Writer's Guide to Weapons

There are several good books in the Howdunit series, but this one is absolutely essential reading for any writer who plans to use firearms in his or her work. Newton doesn't take sides in various firearms debates, but he does go into near-encyclopedic detail about every aspect of firearms, both in antiquity and in the present day. Where he doesn't have space to cover a subject in full detail, he tells you where to find more info. Newton also supplies examples of where other writers, even really good ones, have screwed up badly in their presentation of firearms. If accuracy is important to you as a writer, then you need to read this book, so you won't have your characters blasting each other with ".75 magnums," or taking out targets with sniper-like precision using only a .38 snub-nose revolver (both of which I've actually seen in print).

For writers out there, this book help break down the types of weapons you might need to use in a script. I've used it more than once, and it pays to be accurate!