So im writing a story that takes place in the far flung future in space, now in this time period none of our well known gun companies exist anymore, this presents a problem, i have certain guns in mind for certain characters, should i just say the type (Pistol, shotgun what have you) and leave the reader to imagine the gun themselves or should i try my hand at description of the specific firearm? or should i go middle of the road on it?
Probably depends on how technical your descriptions of everything else are. If you're writing some hard sci-fi, then I, as a reader, would probably appreciate some sort of technical description. If you're writing a space opera, on the other hand, then you could be less technical.
its a bit on the softer side tech wise, i don't go too deep into how the future tech works, but the guns they use aren't blasters or anything (they use those for Atmosphereless conflicts) it's ballistic weaponry that has an occasional base on something from our time (or earlier).
so this is an example of one of the weapons. its an old ww1 era pistol but he's modified it in the story. mind if I do a test run here?
Even if the companies don't exist anymore, the names for the guns may. Or you, the author, can translate from whatever language those future people speak in the future: frostynose may be their word for carrot, but in your mercy spare us from having to learn that. So, they've got what's essentially a shotgun? Call it a shotgun. And some famous firearm designs, the names may have survived all the years: "At his hip hung a pistol in the pattern of the ancient Colt 45, still as deadly as ever." Something like that. (Note that the almost as famous 45 Long Colt was a revolver, not a pistol. To be a pistol, the chamber and barrel have to be a single piece.) After a thousand years, many Japanese sword still carry their ancient names. Once writing takes hold in a culture, this kind of thing happens. Hang a lantern on it if your worried the reader won't believe that: Youngster: "Kinda funny to call this a sniper rifle, after all these centuries. It's not even rifled." Old Coot: "Change came gradual to it. Sniper rifles always seemed a close enough name."
that's a pretty good point. i could have him recognize certain things as reminiscent of different types of guns. im already translating everything anyways (Universal translator makes a great plot device.) though i should also mention it takes place in a parallel universe (He's the only one from our universe, that he knows of anyways). i don't know why i said the far flung future, just chalk it up to writing while tired i guess.
Even if it's a parallel universe, you can translate for us: a knife is a knife, a semi-auto pistol is a semi-auto pistol. A shotgun a shotgun. But it's important that they are different, then describe them, but hopefully somewhere it makes sense, like while someone is field-stripping it for cleaning. There's a traditional scene in stories called "the arming sequence" where the knight straps on his armor, belts on his sword, picks up his shield, and so on. You see the equivalent in movies, when Rambo or whoever gets ready for a fight and dresses and gears himself for it. Do that right, and it gives you a good place to describe the weapons, especially if the user is a professional warrior who has an emotional relationship, such as reverence, with the tools that keep him alive.
y Yeah i'm translating things so it's a bit smoother, i didn't actually think of the Arming sequence idea, it would be a pretty easy thing to work in he is a hired gun after all. and he has a great affection for his weapons.
Yeah, selecting which weapons to take out of his collection for a job gives you a good opportunity to describe at least the capabilities (range, penetrating power, lethality, number of shots before reloading, speed of reloading, etc) and gross characteristics (concealability, weight, traceability) of each weapon he considers.
Well, don't get all gun-nuts about it. (Disclaimer: I am not a gun nut. I don't need to be, I married one.)
I never really gave it much thought. In my story I bare bones it and specify guns by 'mm", or by how they fire, like coil, rail, or fusion. Though I don't have many guns per-se, but it's Sci-fi, so I think the reader can imaging a 15mm pistol that uses gas propelled bullets like we do now, but are just a bit more powerful. Knowing enough of the basics, and explaining the technical points should be enough for any reader to follow along with each type and everything else. Of course it takes a bit more using exotic weapons systems outside of the standard for the genre (lasers and bullets), so that there is a difference between each weapons system and how it works. But that is a lot more tech jargon than most would like to get into. Good luck and have fun.
Describing every single weapon even though he only picks a few. Just describe enough rejected weapons to show (not tell) the requirements of the job ("The MP5? No, not enough penetrating power against body armor.") And once he picks the last one he needs, stop.
Another approach is to characterize the weapons by the impression they give: the big assault rifle he carried, beautifully engineered for its ugly purpose, made his grandson’s look like a child’s toy.
There are a lot of ways you can indicate what sort of a gun something is without going into too many specifics. In Against a Dark Background the heroine carries a handgun with the model name of HandCannon. Don't think the caliber is specified, but we can get a pretty good idea what it's like. In Jinx on a Terran Inheritance there's the Captain's Pistol, which is designed to stop mutinies in their tracks. It has a huge muzzle, a switchblade bayonet, and uses much of its energy in produces a flash and blast to scare the bejeezus out of anyone thinking of joining a mutiny. The blunderbusses in Looper are described as being unable to miss anyone closer than fifteen feet, and unable to hit anyone farther away.
