Johnathan Hillstrand has written and illustrated three children’s books this year, a departure for the co-captain of the F/V Time Bandit, one of the boats featured on Discovery’s hit show “Deadliest Catch.”

Hillstrand, who lives near Covington, found himself with some extra free time last June when he was laid up after a bull riding attempt ended badly and Hillstrand suffered multiple broken ribs.

“I got hurt real bad at a dude ranch,” Hillstrand said. “Stayed one day too long and decided to get on a bull.”

He started drawing pictures for his two grandchildren while he recovered and found himself making up stories to go with them.

“I wrote these books for them,” he said.

Then Hillstrand made the decision to reach a wider audience and turn his love of drawing and his stories into books.

“I made up a story about a little bird that wanted to be a pirate,” Hillstrand said.

One of Hillstrand’s goals was to weave lessons into the stories to encourage and inspire readers young and old. In his first book, “The Adventures of Little Bird: Pirate Dreams,” Hillstrand encourages readers to chase their dreams and not give up even in the face of challenges.

“(It’s) a good lesson for big people and little people,” he said.

The second book, “The Adventures of Joey and Andy Crabs,” will debut this weekend with a book signing by Hillstrand in Covington. The second book features two crab brothers who find themselves in trouble when they disobey their mother and skip school only to find themselves caught in a crab pot.

“Boys, go straight to school and listen to your mother,” Hillstrand said describing the book’s message.

Hillstrand wrote the first two books at the same time, starting with the drawings and then adding the stories.

Not long after he healed from the first accident, just two and a half months after the dude ranch incident, Hillstrand was hurt again in a motorcycle accident.

That time he broke three ribs on his other side and suffered a ruptured spleen, among other injuries. So it was back to drawing he went.

Hillstrand joked that in the past year he’s gone through $6,000 worth of Sharpies, his medium of choice.

The third book, which Hillstrand hopes to release in June, brings the characters from the first two stories together when Joey and Andy find out their father is Little Bird’s pirate captain.

With each story Hillstrand feels he has improved, both in his writing and his drawings.

“The first one was OK, the second one was good, the third one actually made my mom tear up,” Hillstrand said.

In addition to wanting to entertain and teach kids, Hillstrand has also drawn inspiration from his life as a fisherman and captain with characters based off other members of the fishing community like the Harris brothers and Sig Hansen.

For Hillstrand the books have been a return to drawing that he did as a teenager.

“I used to draw, like 30 years ago,” Hillstrand said. “It’s a shame I quit drawing, but it’s coming back.”

Hillstrand has a home in the Covington area where he spends some of the off season to be near his two grown children and grandkids.

“It (getting hurt) turned out to be a good thing,” Hillstrand said. “I turned two really bad accidents into three really good children’s books. It’s crazy how things work out.”

Hillstrand will be signing books from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Nikki’s Restaurant and Lounge, 27120 174th Place S.E., in Covington on Saturday and Sunday where both books will be available.

For more information on Hillstrand and the Time Bandit visit timebandit.tv. Signed copies of Hillstrand’s books can also be purchased from the Time Bandit website.