With an MA and PhD in clinical psychology, Jan has had a private psychotherapy practice for thirty years with offices in both San Francisco and Berkeley, California. She has a specialty in working with dreams in her clinical practice, and works as a consultant for her family’s law firm (ThorpeLaw), formerly in San Francisco, now located in Berkeley. Jan began writing a series of psychological thrillers fifteen years ago, entitled Eye of the Dream, with the fourth in the series to be published in 2026, and the fifth to be published in 2027.

Jan’s series features the same six characters, including two Chow dogs, named Juno and Dido. Her plots start with dangerous secrets that unfold and develop, pulling the characters into unlikely alliances, chance encounters, dangerous liaisons, leading to a denouement no one expects. Due to her long experience with psychological phenomena, storytelling, the meaning of dreams, and paranormal happenings, her plots are complicated with danger and surprise lurking around every corner. Jan’s novels include historical backgrounds, such as the Civil War, the history of African/Nigerian Voudon, Native American tribes, featuring elements of political, paranormal, environmental, and spiritual themes. And wherever she can, Jan infuses her unique brand of dry wit and humor into her writings.