Janet Opal Asimov (née Jeppson; August 6, 1926 – February 25, 2019), usually written as J. O. Jeppson, was an American science fiction writer,
psychiatrist
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...
, and
psychoanalyst
PsychoanalysisFrom Greek language, Greek: + . is a set of Theory, theories and Therapy, therapeutic techniques"What is psychoanalysis? Of course, one is supposed to answer that it is many things — a theory, a research method, a therapy, a bo ...
.
She started writing children's science fiction in the 1970s. She was married to
Isaac Asimov
yi, יצחק אזימאװ
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Petrovichi, Russian SFSR
, spouse =
, relatives =
, children = 2
, death_date =
, death_place = Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
, nationality = Russian (1920–1922)Soviet (192 ...
from 1973 until his death in 1992, and they collaborated on a number of science fiction books aimed at young readers, including the
Norby
Norby is a fictional robot created by Janet Asimov and Isaac Asimov who stars in his own series of children's science fiction books, ''The Norby Chronicles''. His first appearance was in the 1983 book ''Norby, the Mixed-Up Robot'', in total he a ...
series. She died in February 2019 at the age of 92.
[JANET ASIMOV Obituary]
at legacy.com
Education and career
Jeppson earned a
B.A.
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
degree from
Stanford University
Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
(first attending
Wellesley College
Wellesley College is a private women's liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henry and Pauline Durant as a female seminary, it is a member of the original Seven Sisters Colleges, an unofficial g ...
), her
M.D.
Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...
degree from
New York University Medical School
NYU Grossman School of Medicine is a medical school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1841 and is one of two medical schools of the university, with the other being the Long Island School of ...
, completing a residency in psychiatry at
Bellevue Hospital
Bellevue Hospital (officially NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue and formerly known as Bellevue Hospital Center) is a hospital in New York City and the oldest public hospital in the United States. One of the largest hospitals in the United States b ...
. In 1960, she graduated from the
William Alanson White Institute of Psychoanalysis, where she continued to work until 1986.
[''I. Asimov: A Memoir''. Isaac Asimov. Bantam Books. 1995. pgs. 259, 366; ] After her marriage to Isaac Asimov, she continued to practice psychiatry and psychoanalysis under the name Janet O. Jeppson, and she published medical papers under that name.
Writing
Janet Asimov's first published writing was a "mystery short" sold to
Hans Stefan Santesson
Hans Stefan Santesson (July 8, 1914, Paris – February 18, 1975, Edgewater, New Jersey)[The Saint Mystery Magazine
''The Saint'' is the nickname of the fictional character Simon Templar, featured in a series of novels and short stories by Leslie Charteris published between 1928 and 1963. After that date, other authors collaborated with Charteris on books unt ...]
'', which appeared in the May 1966 issue.
Her first novel was ''The Second Experiment'' in 1974; Asimov wrote mostly science fiction novels for children throughout her career.
As a psychiatrist she incorporated aspects of psychoanalysis, human identity, and other psychiatry-related ideas in her writing.
According to Isaac Asimov, the books that Janet Asimov wrote in association with him were 90 percent Janet's, and his name was wanted on the books by the publisher "for the betterment of sales". After Isaac's death, she took on the writing of his syndicated popular-science column in the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
''.
[
]
Husband
Janet Jeppson began dating Isaac Asimov in 1970 immediately following his separation from Gertrude Blugerman. They were married on November 30, 1973, two weeks after Asimov's divorce from Gertrude.the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...
, their marriage was officiated by a leader of Ethical Culture
The Ethical movement, also referred to as the Ethical Culture movement, Ethical Humanism or simply Ethical Culture, is an ethical, educational, and religious movement that is usually traced back to Felix Adler (1851–1933). , a humanist religious group that Janet later joined. On the same day, she learned that her first novel, ''The Second Experiment'', would be published (under her maiden name).HIV
The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
, contracted from a 1983 blood transfusion during bypass surgery
Bypass surgery refers to a class of surgery involving rerouting a tubular body part.
Types include:
* Vascular bypass surgery such as coronary artery bypass surgery, a heart operation
* Cardiopulmonary bypass, a technique used in coronary artery ...
. Janet reportedly consulted medical texts after Isaac began exhibiting symptoms, and she requested an HIV test be performed. His doctors insisted she was wrong and only tested Isaac for the infection after he became seriously ill. She wanted the information made public, but doctors insisted upon not disclosing it, even after Isaac died. After the doctors advising silence had all died, Janet Asimov went public with the knowledge.
Bibliography
Novels
*''The Second Experiment'' (1974) (as J. O. Jeppson)
*''The Last Immortal'' (1980) (a sequel to ''The Second Experiment'') (as J. O. Jeppson)
*''Mind Transfer
Mind uploading is a speculative process of whole brain emulation in which a brain scan is used to completely emulate the mental state of the individual in a digital computer. The computer would then run a simulation of the brain's information pr ...
'' (1988)
*''The Package in Hyperspace'' (1988)
*''Murder at the Galactic Writers' Society'' (1994)
*''The House Where Isadora Danced'' (2009) (as J. O. Jeppson)
Norby Chronicles (with Isaac Asimov)
*''Norby, the Mixed-Up Robot
''Norby, the Mixed-Up Robot'' (1983, Walker & Company) is the first book in the Norby series by Janet Asimov and Isaac Asimov. In it, Jefferson Wells and Norby stop Ing from taking over the Solar System with the help of Jeff's brother Fargo Well ...
'' (1983)
*''Norby's Other Secret'' (1984)
*''Norby and the Lost Princess'' (1985)
*''Norby and the Invaders'' (1985)
*''Norby and the Queen's Necklace'' (1986)
*''Norby Finds a Villain'' (1987)
*''Norby Down to Earth'' (1988)
*''Norby and Yobo's Great Adventure'' (1989)
*''Norby and the Oldest Dragon'' (1990)
*''Norby and the Court Jester'' (1991)
*''Norby and the Terrified Taxi'' (1997) Written alone, after her husband's death.
Collections
*''The Mysterious Cure, and Other Stories of Pshrinks Anonymous'' (1985) (as J. O. Jeppson hardcover, as Janet Asimov paperback)[''I. Asimov: A Memoir.''. Isaac Asimov. Bantam Books. 1995. p. 367. ]
* ''The Touch: Epidemic of the Millennium.'' Edited by Patrick Merla. . (Janet Asimov contributor)
Anthologies
*''Laughing Space: Funny Science Fiction Chuckled Over'' (1982) with Isaac Asimov
Nonfiction
*''How to Enjoy Writing: A Book of Aid and Comfort'' (1987) with Isaac Asimov
*''Frontiers II'' (1993) with Isaac Asimov
*''It's Been a Good Life
''It's Been a Good Life'' (2002) is a book edited by Janet Jeppson Asimov. The book, published by Prometheus Books (), is a collection of Isaac Asimov's diaries, personal letters, and a condensation of his three earlier autobiographies:
* ''I ...
'' (2002) edited, with Isaac Asimov
*''Notes for a Memoir: On Isaac Asimov, Life, and Writing'' (as Janet Jeppson Asimov) (New York: Prometheus Books, 2006);
References
External links
*
Obituary
at The Humanist website, 4 March 2019
Obituary
at Locus Online, 5 March 2019
{{DEFAULTSORT:Asimov, Janet
1926 births
2019 deaths
20th-century American novelists
21st-century American novelists
American science fiction writers
American women short story writers
American short story writers
American women novelists
Novelists from Pennsylvania
People from Ashland, Pennsylvania
New York University Grossman School of Medicine alumni
Stanford University alumni
American women psychiatrists
American psychoanalysts
Women science fiction and fantasy writers
20th-century American women writers
21st-century American women writers
Wellesley College alumni
Ethical movement
Former Latter Day Saints
Bellevue Hospital physicians