TLDR: The military uses many kinds of knives, but few can match the iconic KA-BAR USMC.
BJ Wolf is a crime writer (check out her website here and follow her on Twitter here) working on the first in a trilogy of novels featuring detective Karen Yellowtail. She sent me a note looking for some feedback on assigning an ex-military character a knife for some unsavory work.
Can you tell just by looking whether this is a switchblade or an assisted opener? Most people can’t. Click the pic to find out why. (Image via BLADE)
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It’s my lucky day, because the hits keep on coming. Lee Lofland hosted my guest blog post about the differences between switchblade and assisted opening knives over at The Graveyard Shift. Check it out for an interesting analysis of knife laws and current events as they relate to fiction. Continue reading
Thriller writer Jennifer Chase popped a note to me the other day. She was looking for a recommendation for a backup knife for her vigilante detective character, Emily Stone. It seems the protagonist sometimes can’t access her sidearms, and needed something for last-ditch defense.
I enjoyed playing Q, and the resulting guest blog post is up now at Chase’s blog. I’ll spoil it a little bit and list the knives I chose for Stone, although I recommend you read the entire post for the step-by-step selection process. Continue reading
If you like what I do here at CrimeFictionBook.com, I think you’ll enjoy these websites, too.
Here’s a new field for the 21st Century: digital forensics. Brett Shavers offers high-tech insights for depicting things like cloud-based forensics and identity theft. I like the title of one of his books, too: Placing the Suspect Behind the Keyboard. (with thanks to crime writer BJ Wolf for her excellent recommendations) Continue reading
Even though it sounds like yet another dance move I’ll never try without a few drinks (joke’s on you, suckers, I don’t drink), “jimping” is not at all related to limping, jumping or even pimping. When we’re talking about writing knives in fiction, jimping is the row of toothy grooves roughly located where the handle meets the blade. Like blade tangs, jimping is an overlooked part of choosing a knife for a character.
Here’s a look at what I’m talking about. This is my Benchmade Nimravus Cub II, my favorite fixed blade knife in fiction and reality.
“Jimping” is sometimes spelled as “gimping,” although the first version is how I’d write it.
The Writer's Guide to Weapons 