Brian Pontolilo has spent nearly a quarter-century as a journalist, writer, editor, and producer covering residential design and construction at Fine Homebuilding magazine and GreenBuildingAdvisor.com. Brian has a degree in professional writing, worked for a short time at local newspapers, and as a novice in landscape construction, painting, and carpentry before coming to the Taunton Press, and during the many breaks he has taken from office life. On his most recent hiatus from full-time employment, Brian designed and built a net-zero-energy house in northwest Connecticut following the Pretty Good House philosophy. He rejoined the FHB staff once again in the summer of 2023.