My Dear Friend: Piper J Drake
This is going to be a difficult post to read.
Please skip it and protect yourself if necessary.
On May 18, 2026 in New York, one of my very favorite humans, the author Piper J Drake (Lalana Dararutana), died. She was not yet 50.
She leaves behind an amazing husband (Matthew), wonderful parents and siblings, a large and delightful family of foodies, thousands of devoted readers, and countless friends who loved her, one of whom was me.
Piper fought cancer incredibly hard, at great expense in all ways, to stay alive as long as she could. It was only when she was told she wouldn’t be able to eat the foods she loved that she decided enough was enough. Fair cop, if you ask me.
This last winter I was away in Thailand, a place I truly love, spending time with people I adore. But it was not a vacation, it was a pre-reminiscence. Piper and I were foreshadowing the fact that we would not get to be crotchety little old ladies complaining together about the lack of good spice profiles in our nursing home’s kitchen.
Instead, we spent several months co-authoring experiences and hoarding memories, mostly mine – because we knew she wasn’t going to get to keep them for herself. We got out and about (me learning to push a wheelchair… badly) visiting food markets, gardens, and temples. We even did a little shopping, terrorizing vendors with our infectious enthusiasm.
I’m sure we were horribly embarrassing for everyone around us and I will miss her.
One of my most beloved Piper memories is us at a fancy restaurant in Seattle squealing over a yummy appetizer, Matthew smiling at us with a kind of indulgent wonder. (I’m sure we were a lot.) Piper prepared the “perfect bite” off her own plate and fed it to me, just because she wanted to see my delighted face. Both of us have cultural heritage, from very different parts of the world, that believe food is love.
That bite was one of the purest acts of love I have ever received in my whole life.
She introduced me to one of my favorite teas (Taiwanese milk oolong), and teapots (Japanese), and countless new-to-me Thai dishes (especially khanom).
No one else I have ever met so exactly shared my taste in both food and travel, and those are two of my most favourite things ever. Bonus, we were both writers! No wonder she so quickly became one of mine.
When I asked what her favorite parts were to write, she said “movement, whether fighting or intimacy.” This makes perfect sense if you knew her or read her books. She was strong and graceful and still discussing story structure right up until the end. I am gutted we got less than ten years. It wasn’t enough time.
She left, without question, too soon. And I know, without a doubt, that I am not the only one who will miss her.
I’ve always liked the concept of the red thread connecting souls through multiple lifetimes. Not just one thread of romantic love but multiple threads for all forms of love, from family to friendship and beyond.
If this is the case, and love is a many-stranded means of connection, then Piper wove a beautiful crimson tapestry. I was so very lucky to be part of that weave.
I hope in our next life that our thread will tug us together again and that I’m lucky enough to get to be her friend once more.
Piper requested donations to charities be made in her honor, in lieu of other forms of condolences:
But, her medical expenses were exorbitant, leaving Matthew struggling not just with grief, if you have the means to contribute to her GoFundMe, that would really be appreciated.
Piper truly loved writing and releasing her books into the world, please read them and share them with others who might enjoy them?
Since you are readers of my stuff, the 3 I’d recommend the most are:
A cozy paranormal mystery set in the greater Seattle area that I had the honor of brainstorming with her.
Wings Once Cursed And Bound
A romantic contemporary fantasy series (of linked stand-alones) that uses little known mythology, including Thai.
If you enjoyed Divinity 36 or The 5th Gender this one might work for you.
Please take care of yourselves out there and tell the people you love that you love them.
If Piper taught me nothing else it was to write when you can, take pictures of your food, and seize every opportunity to enjoy yourself.
So, please eat something tasty for us and remember:
Travel smart, pack the snacks.
kianamaiart
romaincrisis
janainaart
turnnoffyourmind
vaporwave
baratheonpilled
snowghoul
