The son of a fisherman, Jansen grew up in a small port town on the coast. His early life was generally uneventful, his days spent helping his father.
As he grew older, Jansen began to wish for more excitement in his life - he realised that he had no real desire to follow in the footsteps of his father and become a fisherman. He became steadily more wilful as his boredom grew, gaining a reputation as a mischief-maker around the town. The last straw came when a fire that destroyed much of the port's general store was traced back to, among others, Jansen. Jan claimed that the fire had been an accident - that he hadn't meant to burn anything down and had only wanted to play a prank. However, his father had had enough and sent him away, telling him not to return home until he had made something useful of himself.
For several years, Jan wandered, taking on odd jobs here and there, but never finding anything that truly settled him. He joined a group of travelling performers for some time, learning how to play the fiddle, perform a few minor magical tricks and earning a few coins before a disagreement with one of the acrobats caused him to leave again. He took jobs as caravan guards to earn some money while moving from town to town. In rough times, he would steal from purses left unguarded.
However, in addition to his skills as a musician, Jansen also discovered he had a love - and talent - for telling stories. Upon reaching a new town, he would earn his keep by playing tunes and telling tales in taverns, while the patrons ate and drank.
Still unwilling to return home, as he does not believe his father will approve of what he has become, Jansen continues to move around from place to place as a travelling bard.
