Peter Benchley, the author of Jaws, has died at 65.

Benchley died of complications from pulmonary fibrosis, a progressive scarring of the lungs from which he had been suffering for over a year.

"It was peaceful," son-in-law Chris Turner said of Benchley's passing, adding that the writer's wife Wendy and other family members had been by his side.

Benchley grew up in New York City and worked as both a journalist and political speechwriter before publishing landmark novel Jaws in 1974. The book sold more than 20 million copies, and was made into the eponymous blockbuster by Steven Spielberg.

Although Benchley wrote about terrifying creatures that lurk in the sea, he himself stated: "[I have] never been hurt by a sea creature, except for jellyfish and sea urchins. If you're careful, you don't have to worry about being attacked by sea creatures."