Author says Potter lexicon ‘theft’

NEW YORK – JK Rowling testified before a packed courtroom in a lawsuit to block publication of a Harry Potter lexicon, telling a judge that the book amounts to a “wholesale theft” of nearly 20 years of her hard work.

“We all know I’ve made enough money. That’s absolutely not why I’m here,” Rowling told the judge on Monday in US District Court.The British author sued Michigan-based RDR Books last year to stop publication of Steven Vander Ark’s ‘Harry Potter Lexicon’, claiming copyright infringement.Vander Ark runs the popular Harry Potter Lexicon Web site, and RDR wants to publish a print version of the site and charge US$24,95.Rowling claims the book is nothing more than a rearrangement of her own material and told the judge it copied so much of her work that it amounted to plagiarism.”I think it’s atrocious.I think it’s sloppy.I think there’s very little research,” she testified.”This book constitutes wholesale theft of 17 years of my hard work.”She also said she has recently started work on her own encyclopaedia and plans to donate resulting profits to charity, though she added that she does not expect to complete it for two to three years because she wants to do it right.If Vander Ark’s lexicon is published, “I’m not at all convinced that I would have the will or the heart to continue with my encyclopaedia,” she said.RDR’s lawyer, Anthony Falzone, defended the lexicon as a reference guide, calling it a legitimate effort “to organise and discuss the complicated and very elaborate world of Harry Potter”.The publisher is not contesting that the lexicon infringes upon Rowling’s copyright but argues that it is a fair use allowable by law for reference books.Rowling said she believed a victory by Vander Ark could damage the Potter name and embolden imitators.The non-jury trial will be decided by US District Judge Robert Patterson Jr, who must determine whether the use of the material is legal because Vander Ark added his own interpretation, creativity and analysis.The testimony and arguments could last most of the week.In sometimes emotional testimony, Rowling recalled starting work on the first book in 1991 when she was 25 and so destitute that she sometimes had to choose between purchasing typewriter ribbon and food.She said the Harry Potter characters were a fantasy world to which she could escape from the hard work of raising a child on welfare as a single mother.Rowling, who lives in Edinburgh, Scotland, with her husband and children, also testified she had stopped work on a new novel because the lawsuit has “decimated my creative work over the last month”.Nampa-APThat’s absolutely not why I’m here,” Rowling told the judge on Monday in US District Court.The British author sued Michigan-based RDR Books last year to stop publication of Steven Vander Ark’s ‘Harry Potter Lexicon’, claiming copyright infringement.Vander Ark runs the popular Harry Potter Lexicon Web site, and RDR wants to publish a print version of the site and charge US$24,95.Rowling claims the book is nothing more than a rearrangement of her own material and told the judge it copied so much of her work that it amounted to plagiarism.”I think it’s atrocious.I think it’s sloppy.I think there’s very little research,” she testified.”This book constitutes wholesale theft of 17 years of my hard work.”She also said she has recently started work on her own encyclopaedia and plans to donate resulting profits to charity, though she added that she does not expect to complete it for two to three years because she wants to do it right.If Vander Ark’s lexicon is published, “I’m not at all convinced that I would have the will or the heart to continue with my encyclopaedia,” she said.RDR’s lawyer, Anthony Falzone, defended the lexicon as a reference guide, calling it a legitimate effort “to organise and discuss the complicated and very elaborate world of Harry Potter”.The publisher is not contesting that the lexicon infringes upon Rowling’s copyright but argues that it is a fair use allowable by law for reference books.Rowling said she believed a victory by Vander Ark could damage the Potter name and embolden imitators.The non-jury trial will be decided by US District Judge Robert Patterson Jr, who must determine whether the use of the material is legal because Vander Ark added his own interpretation, creativity and analysis.The testimony and arguments could last most of the week.In sometimes emotional testimony, Rowling recalled starting work on the first book in 1991 when she was 25 and so destitute that she sometimes had to choose between purchasing typewriter ribbon and food.She said the Harry Potter characters were a fantasy world to which she could escape from the hard work of raising a child on welfare as a single mother.Rowling, who lives in Edinburgh, Scotland, with her husband and children, also testified she had stopped work on a new novel because the lawsuit has “decimated my creative work over the last month”.Nampa-AP

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