Savannah Jackson is one of four protagonists in Waiting to Exhale. Savannah is a 36-year-old professional woman who begins the novel hoping to find love. Savannah wants to be married, primarily due to pressure from her mother and sister that adds to her sense that she is missing out on something by not having a husband and children. Savannah’s sister accuses her of putting her career first and that her career ambitions have caused her to miss out on finding love. Savannah does have ambition, hoping that she will one day become a TV producer, but she actually takes a pay cut in order to move to Phoenix to be closer to her former college roommate, Bernadine Harris.

Savannah is strong and independent. She goes out, meets new people, and opens herself up to the possibility of love. However, each of the men she meets let her down in one way or another. The first man is Lionel, a former acquaintance of her brother-in-law whom she is told is an ambitious businessman. However, as Savannah gets to know him, it becomes clear that he is a conman who indulges in one get-rich-quick scam after another. The second man Savannah is involved with is a former lover with whom she broke up because he was never clear about his feelings for her.