Captured by Pirates

Justine Fontes was born in New York City. She grew up on Long Island and later graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. in English Liternature from New York University. Justine found her first job in publishing while she was a Freshman. She worked at various publishing houses before becoming a freelance writer. At Little Golden Books, Justine met her future husband, Ron Fontes. They started writing together and have written over 500 children’s books. Justine and Ron moved to Maine in 1988.

Ron Fontes was born in Los Angeles. He grew up in Clarksville, Tennessee, where his mother taught him to read at age 4. By 16, Ron had a science fiction comic strip in the local newspaper. He was a theater major at Austin Peay State University, where he costumed and performed in many shows while working at a printing company to pay for school. Ron went on to act in film before becoming an advertising executive, and he then moved to New York City and worked for Whitman Comics and Marvel. Ron is a prolific artist and co-author of over 500 children’s books with his wife, Justine.

David Witt is an artist living and working in Saint Paul, Minnesota. His work as a poster artist has been published in the Art of Modern Rock by Paul Grushkin and Dennis King, and Gig Posters by Clayton Hayes. He has done menu screen art for Guitar Hero II, as well as creating numerous T-shirt designs and album art for bands around the world. He continues to work freelance and also finds time to paint and participate in art shows around the country. In the summer he spends most of his time in his garden. His work at Lerner includes Isis and Osiris, The Hero Twins, Nightmare on Zombie Island, Captured by Pirates, and Attack of the Mutant Meteors.