I'm currently writing a zombie apocalypse novel in which I will be using the names of several real guns (from companies such as Beretta, Smith & Wesson, Colt, Nexter, etc.). Will this end up costing me should I decide to publish? First time posting here, so sorry if anything I'm doing isn't exactly kosher.
It's fine to use brand names. But you should know about a few "rules." Do a search on the following four terms: "trademark infringement," "trademark dilution," "trademark tarnishment,"and "defamation."
You should be all right so long as you are not slagging off a company or manufacturer. If that's the case or you want to err on the side of caution, maybe you could come up with a fictional firearm manufacturer or go for generic gun names. Machine gun, six shooter, sidearm, revolver, automatic etc. (I don't know that much about guns so please forgive the generic names if they are a bit pants).
