Brown denies plagiarism charges
2006-03-14 08:33
London - Summoned from his New Hampshire home to the glare of a London courtroom, author Dan Brown strongly rejected claims he copied two other writers' work - and provided a rare glimpse into the life and working methods of one of the world's best-selling but least-known authors.
Brown, the author of The Da Vinci Code, was to continue testifying on Tuesday, defending his best-selling novel against claims he copied the work of Michael Baigent and Richard Leigh, who in 1982 wrote The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail. Both books explore theories - dismissed by theologians - that Mary Magdalene was not a prostitute but Jesus' wife, the couple had a child and the bloodline survives.
During his first day on the stand on Monday, Brown dismissed the claims of the plaintiffs as "completely fanciful," and said he did not read Baigent and Leigh's work until the story line of his theological thriller was already in place.
But it was his 69-page witness statement that ended up causing the stir. The document is important for offering fresh insight into the creative process of one of the world's most popular authors - and for giving a compelling explanation of how he wrote the theological thriller.
"For me, writing is a discipline, much like playing a musical instrument," Brown said in the statement. "It requires constant practice and honing of skills. For this reason, I write seven days a week."
Brown said he rises at 04:00, a routine he began when he was working two jobs as a teacher to pay the bills and the early morning hours were the only time he had to put proverbial pen to paper.
"I found I liked working at that hour, and though I no longer teach, I have remained faithful to that routine," Brown said. "By making writing my first order of business every day, I am giving it enormous symbolic importance in my life, which helps keep me motivated."
Some exercise
He keeps an antique hourglass on his desk - offering a helpful reminder on when to take breaks. He said he stops every hour for some exercise -push-ups, sit-ups, and stretching - that keeps the "blood and ideas flowing."
Nor does furniture really matter: the office where Brown wrote his book's outline was actually his parents laundry room. His desk was an ironing board.
Brief glimpses of the past offered shadows of plots to come. Brown's interest in secret societies was likely stoked by his boyhood surroundings. Growing up in leafy New England, he was surrounded by the "clandestine clubs" of Ivy League universities.
"In my youth I was very aware of the Skull and Bones club at Yale," Brown said of the society to which both US President George W Bush and his father belong.
The statement also gave credit to Brown's wife, Blythe, for helping research the work.
He said Baigent and Leigh's work was one among a number of other books and documents he read as he researched the best seller, which has now been made into a movie starring Tom Hanks and Audrey Tautou.
If Baigent and Leigh succeed in securing an injunction to bar the use of their material, they could hold up the scheduled May 19 release of the film.
Copyright
Random House lawyers say the ideas in dispute are so general they are not protected by copyright. And they say that many of the concepts in Baigent and Leigh's work do not figure in Brown's novel, which follows fictional professor Robert Langdon as he investigates the murder of an elderly member of an ancient society that guards dark secrets about the story of Jesus and the quest for the Holy Grail.
Brown said he had fully acknowledged his debt to the two authors by having a character in The Da Vinci Code refer to the earlier book and its theories, naming a character in the novel Sir Leigh Teabing - an anagram of Baigent and Leigh.
- AP