Do you like to read character interviews?
Today we’re going to revisit one of my Savannah Sweethearts main characters, Piper Peyton, who is the chef-owner of Piper’s Place in Savannah. Piper Peyton’s restaurant has appeared in every single book in the series, since the days of the prequel, Ask You Later. However, I didn’t get to her story until the eleventh book, which is the very last book in the series.
Feel free to comment on your favorite character interviews. Or maybe which characters (of any book by any author) you would like to see interviewed.
Everyone who comments will be entered into a drawing to receive an ebook copy of the first book in the Savannah Sweethearts series: Ask You Later. This 45,000-word novel is also the prelude to its spin-off series, Vacation Sweethearts, and a sister series, Seaside Chapel. This giveaway is for USA only and ends on June 10, 2020 (Wednesday).
Two years ago, I interviewed Heidi Wei-Flores from my series, Savannah Sweethearts. Her story is told in Know You More (Savannah Sweethearts Book 1). If you missed the interview from July 2018, you can check out the interview here:
When the blog post was published, I was still writing the series. In August 2019, I finally published the last novel, Call You Home. Clocking in at over 96,000 words, this is the longest book in the Savannah Sweethearts series and tells the story of two chefs in one kitchen. Chef Isaac Untermeyer happened to be dining that night before Thanksgiving when two of Piper’s chefs quit at the same time. Piper reluctantly hired him on the spot.
At that time, Piper was too busy trying to save her restaurant to accept any interviews. However, since all is well now, she has decided to sit down for this one. How nice of her! She says she’s doing me a favor because I’m her biographer, but she is sure that I don’t know everything about her. Oh really?
I usually drive to Savannah as it’s only about five hours from where I work. Piper’s Place is on a very busy part of River Street in Savannah, which has a long history of its own. In fact, the restaurant is housed in a historic building. Tourists are usually everywhere. I park several blocks away and wear my hiking boots to walk to Piper’s Place.
Since the restaurant is open twenty-four hours, there is no lull. The chefs work in shifts, and they are always busy. I text Piper as I arrive, and the maître d’ takes me upstairs to Piper’s favorite table on the third floor overlooking the promenade and the Savannah River. Today is a cloudy day but there is no rain. Sometimes it rains out here. I see a riverboat that still hosts the Riverside Chapel church. I take a few photos and wait for Piper and Heidi to arrive. I check my interview notes.
Did I just say Heidi? Yes. Since I do not speak American Sign Language (ASL), Heidi Wei-Flores is going to interpret for me. The way it works is this: I will ask the questions aloud, Heidi will tell Piper what I say, Piper will sign her answers, and Heidi will tell me what she says. I thought about emailing Piper the questions ahead of time, but I want to hear some spontaneous answers from her, so this is how we agree to do it. This way, Piper doesn’t know the questions I am going to ask.
I cannot believe Piper is feeding me a second lunch while I wait. It’s on the house, but I can’t eat too much since I had a late breakfast. But I order spaghetti and eat it up. Piper and Heidi show up with the dessert. I tell them I cannot eat any more, but the cupcake says, “Eat me!” so I oblige.
We are finally ready to start the interview, but you know what? I am stuffed with too much pasta and cupcake, and now I feel very sleepy and don’t feel like reading my prepared interview questions. So I decide to wing it and ask her only five questions that maybe her fans don’t know about. In a way, it becomes a conversation with Piper.
Me: Piper, the locals love your restaurant for the atmosphere, but more importantly, for the food. What’s your favorite dish in the restaurant?
Piper (via Heidi): You might expect me to say every dish is my favorite, and that would be true. I don’t put on the menu what I don’t want to eat. So yes, everything. However, I do like cupcakes. Here, have some more.
Me: Isaac said that he was surprised you hired him when he showed up, even though you two didn’t get along for years. Tell us more about your vendetta, if that’s all right to speak about it now.
Piper (via Heidi): Yes. It has ended a while back. Basically Isaac and I used to be friends in high school until he lost to me in a cooking competition. I won a scholarship to college and he wasn’t happy about it. We did not speak for twenty years until he showed up at my restaurant on the day my two chefs quit. I believe that God sent him, and I hired him because I was desperate. We sorted out our differences. You can read my novel to see how we dealt with it and reconciled.
Me: How is your herb garden coming along? What advice would you give someone who is a beginner at planting herbs?
Piper (via Heidi): I have herb gardens in two places now. One is at the greenhouse at a my mother-in-law’s Christmas tree farm, and the other is in my backyard. My advice for beginners is not to do too much all at once. I have to plant a lot of herbs because we use them in my restaurant. But if you just need a few sprigs of parsley or rosemary every now and then, you do not need a giant greenhouse for that. You can start by getting pre-planted herbs from the local garden shop, transfer them into pretty containers with the right kinds of potting soil, for example. Follow the instructions that come with the little seedlings and water them everyday. If you plant your herbs in containers on the deck or backyard, you can bring them indoors in the winter. Georgia has mild winters, but I still try to protect the plants all year round.
Me: How do you see yourself in five years? Will you travel some of the time with Isaac in his food truck?
Piper (via Heidi): Isaac is traveling less with his food truck because he’s also teaching at various local cooking schools. However, he has people working for him who will take the truck out to corporate parties, celebrations, events, and food festivals. I go with him when he’s at food festivals because he wants me to be his sous chef. If you want to know how we end up cooking together in competitions, you’ll have to read my book!
Me: You are active in the Deaf Community, and you hire both speaking and Deaf people in your kitchen. How do your speaking chefs and kitchen staff communicate with their counterparts?
Piper (via Heidi): In my kitchen, the speaking staff understand that ASL is a plus for them. Even in high school in Georgia, you can take ASL as a second language instead of a foreign language. All ASL courses they take are paid for by Piper’s Place. Everyone who wants to work here naturally tries to learn ASL because it’s a positive for morale. Even Isaac, who initially was not supposed to work more than a couple of weeks for me, also learned ASL. He has become quite proficient in it. Some may say that Deaf people should learn to speak English. However that is not practical for many reasons.
Our interview ends just as a plate of paella passes by our table. I have to tell you that it smells so delicious that I almost have a third lunch. I resist. After the interview, I walk down three flights of stairs and then several blocks to my car in an attempt to work off the many cupcakes I ate.
Unfortunately, by the time I reach my hotel to type out this interview to meet the deadline, I am hungry again. And I order a takeout from Piper’s Place. Of course, I order the seafood paella.
There you have it, our only interview with Chef Piper Peyton. Readers, if you haven’t read Piper’s story, here is a sneak peek of it from Amazon. It’s also available to borrow via Kindle Unlimited. Happy reading!
Don’t forget to comment for a chance to win the prequel novel in my Savannah Sweethearts series. Ask You Later is the story of folk artist Leon Watts trying to get his sculptures displayed in Simon’s Gallery. If only he can get past the gallery owner’s daughter who has no appreciation for his type of art.
Have a blessed day in the Lord!
In Christ,
Jan Thompson
USA Today bestselling novelist Jan Thompson writes clean and wholesome multiethnic contemporary Christian romance with elements of women’s fiction, Christian romantic suspense with an air of mystery, and inspirational international thrillers with threads of sweet Christian romance. Join Jan's mailing list for her latest book news: JanThompson.com/newsletter
Hi Jan! Intriguing blog. Thanks for the beautiful pictures of Savannah and food. Unfortunately I am not fond of Savannah, because in April 1990 on our way to Florida with our three boys – the youngest was 3 months old, at our hotel thieves smashed a window and stole all our summer clothes, my husbands briefcase and his sermon notes. Not a great way to start a much needed family vacation. Fortunately my husband found a glass repair shop to fix the window so we could continue to Florida. Always intrigued by stories with characters that have a handicap. Thanks for sharing. Not sure, which character I would want interviewed. Best wishes. Enjoy the weekend.
My husband and I visited Savannah a few years ago and loved it. Thanks for reminding me of the good times spent there and in Tybee Bay.
That was a fun post, thank you.
Jan,
That was fun! I haven’t read a character interview before. And the photos! Yumm! and Pretty area! They almost make me want to hop a plane to Savannah and find their restaurant and spend time there. I haven’t been to Savannah but have heard it is lovely. Thanks. :D
Great post! I love Savannah! A friend and I visited back in 1993, and I’d love to go back. I loved River Street! The restaurant we ate lunch in the first full day we were there was on River Street. I have three of the books from this series in my TBR stack!
This was fun to read. I have not heard of this series before, but now I want to read it. I have been to Savannah for a short weekend, but would enjoy going back again.
This is the first time I have read an “interview” like this & I love it! I really need to get through my backlog of books so I can read this series, it sounds just awesome! Thanks for such a neat way of looking at Piper. I have never been to Savanna before so “visiting” through these books will be so neat. I have never really traveled anywhere and fill my mind with many visits through books.
Since my wife is an ASL community interpreter, I offer my response in ASL syntax:
Interview? Fun. Piper she, food yummy truly. Restaurant wonderful seems. Happy, helpers ASL learn. ASL class Piper pay? Wow! Food universal language. Deaf disability? You next all-deaf party come. Disability who has? Will see truly! For interview, thank you! Two cultures mix, happen all learn. Later.
English translation: What a fun interview. Piper’s food looks really yummy! The restaurant seems wonderful. Glad to hear that her staff learns ASL. It’s really amazing that Piper pays for their ASL classes. Food really is a universal language. But deafness as a disability? Join us at our next all-deaf party and we’ll see who has the disability :) Thank you for the interview. When two cultures mix, we all learn. Talk to you later.
Thank you for sharing. Have a blessed weekend.
What a wonderful interview.
Thank you for your comments! Wow that is a terrible incident. Since Savannah has been a tourist town for a long time, it’s best to be careful about thieves. It’s best to not leave anything valuable in the car. One never knows.
re: “handicap” – I don’t believe the Deaf community will consider being Deaf a “handicap” at all. It’s a new language for many.
Thank you for stopping by!
So glad you enjoyed Savannah. It’s a beautiful city. Love Tybee also!
Thank you for your comments!
Thank you!
Thank you for your comments. I hope you get to visit Savannah soon. It was first settled by the British in 1732 so there are still some leftover things from that era although most of the buildings are from the 19th century (because of the fire).
Glad you enjoyed Piper’s interview!
Thank you very much, Trudy. Glad you enjoyed visiting Savannah. What a memorable city it is, isn’t it?
I remember eating in a restaurant on River Street that had New Orleans flavors. But a few years after that I returned to go back there and it was out of business LOL. The next time I go back to Savannah, I wonder what else would have changed. But if one restaurant goes, another will take its place. So we always have good food!
Thank you for the books on your TBR! I hope you enjoy reading them!
Thank you for your comments. Yes, the Savannah Sweethearts series has 11 books in all (10 books plus 1 prequel). Here is the book list:
JanThompson.com/savannah
If you’re a Kindle Unlimited subscriber, you can find the entire series there.
Glad you had fun in Savannah. Yes, a weekend short, but it’s such a memorable city! Hope you get to go back soon.
Glad you enjoyed the interview! I had fun writing it in first person present tense. All my books are in third person past tense, so it was a different option just to change it up a little.
IKR – I also have a TBR about five years deep LOL. This weekend, Book 5 is actually free. I forgot all about that when I wrote this blog post.
JanThompson.com/walk-amazon
It will be free only until Monday (June 8) but IDK which timezone. However it’s also in Kindle Unlimited if you’re a subscriber.
Hope you get to visit Savannah some day! It’s a beautiful old colonial town. Not as old as Jamestown or Charleston, but there are remnants from the 18th century still there. And you know, Robert Louis Stevenson visited it and got the idea for Treasure Island. He named the city in the novel.
Thank you for your comments! That’s great! I consulted with a couple of ASL interpreters when I wrote the novel, and I was certain that I could not “write” in ASL since I am not a speaker of ASL and I want to be as accurate as possible all that I write. So what I did was use an interpreter (secondary characters in the novel, including Heidi) to “translate” ASL into English and vice versa. I also used text messages between the two main characters, knowing that they will write in full sentences or at least phrases that a hearing person can understand. I received some good feedback from my ASL interpreters, so I’m thankful about that.
re: “disability” – I sure hope NOBODY calls Deaf that at all. Piper might be Deaf, but she is my main character in the novel. She is selfless, brave, generous, and yes, she takes very good care of her employees. In the novel, she is sacrificial. And she is a strong Christian.
I hope you get to read the novel too. And please tell your wife hello! Thanks again for stoping by!
Thank you. May God bless your weekend too!
Thank you!
I love that you chose to interview a character who lives with a disability. It is so rare for any character to have a disability and be portrayed in a powerful and positive way!
Jan,
My comment about deafness as a disability was not at all in reference to your book, Piper as a character or the interview. I posted my comment before I saw your response to Renate’s comment. I added that part also because it is such a common topic dealt with in the Deaf community. No worries at all. A useful distinction that is common is the difference between Deaf and deaf. To be deaf (small d) is a reference to physical hearing loss. It is a medical fact. Being Deaf (big D) refers to being a member of the Deaf community, the group of people who are united by the shared language ASL (or other dialects in other countries). Sign language and its use has a tumultuous history over the last 150 years including active factions seeking to ban its use. Even some hearing people are included in Deaf culture (such as CODAs, Children Of Deaf Adults), who are fluent in sign language and the cultural issues related to the Deaf culture.
It sounds like Piper is Deaf (big D), embracing her ASL heritage and honoring God in that amazing border land where Deaf and Hearing cultures overlap. I applaud your choice to include such a cross-cultural heroine in your series.
Thank you. Yes, Piper is Deaf. I am glad I did convey ASL as a language just like any other language. In fact, Piper had an opportunity to get an implant but she decided not to. She also reads lips, BTW.
Appreciate your comments! Piper’s novel was 4 years in the making in terms of my writing schedule. She appeared in Book 1 of the Savannah Sweethearts series where she accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior, but it wasn’t until Book 10 that I was able to write her story. By then, she has 10 years to grow as a Christian. This last novel in the series is also the longest book in the series, at 96,000+ words.
Thanks again for your comment!
Those pictures are making me hungry! As someone who as a disability I thought his was a great interview.
Thank you! Yummy restaurant!
In Reach for Me (Vacation Sweethearts Book 2), I featured an amputee veteran. In Share with Me (Seaside Chapel Book 1), the pastor’s wife is blind. In Cherish You So (Savannah Sweethearts Book 4), the hero is a billionaire paraplegic in a wheelchair. I do like to write Christians of all walks of life and with many challenges.
Thank you for stopping by!
That’s great, its refreshing to see and now I’m going to add your books to my tbr list :)