By Carlee Shimek
A fresh and brand new voice comes to life here in Eau Claire with the release of Loose Change: Picking up the Pieces by S.Z. Putnam. Putnam’s debut poetry book was released in June of 2022 from Read or Green Books in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Fear not, though, you don’t have to go all the way there for a copy. The book is available through Putnam’s website and at Dotters Books right here in Eau Claire. I had the opportunity to sit down (virtually) with Putnam to discuss her book’s content, how it came about, and her journey back into writing after a ten-year hiatus.
Following a mainly linear pattern with free-verse poems telling the story (some rhyming, some not), Loose Change encompasses Putnam’s discovery of her husband’s substance abuse addiction, her trauma and process with that knowledge, and her and her family’s recovery from the ordeal. Powerfully spoken with passionate poetry, Putnam reveals the inner workings of her mind in connection with addiction’s painful effect on its victims and their families.
“For me, it just felt really good and cathartic to write it out and just release these energies so that I wasn’t holding onto them,” Putnam said about the emotional journey through writing her book. “It was just a really good and healthy way to let it go. And it really helped me to heal and reach out for other sources of help. I just want that for everybody else. Just so that they know that they can do it as well.”
A braided combination of many writing styles is found within this creative storyteller’s debut book. It entails Putnam’s discovery of her husband’s substance addiction, the events and aftermath of the journey out of the situation, and her emotions and thoughts. The beginning does include some love poetry about how Putnam and her husband first met and fell in love, as well as prose sections placed throughout the book. The prose pieces act as anchor points when shifting to the next phase of the story told within the poems.
“[The book’s] more or less highlighting how to get back into a place where you no longer feel alone, like you’re connected again to the community and people you love,” Putnam said.
Putnam was always a writer at heart, writing personal prose pieces for years. She took a break from writing during her career in marketing, after which she suddenly decided to start writing again around May of 2021, this time as a poet. Without prior poetry experience, and with some assistance from her younger relatives, Putnam set up an Instagram account and started posting mini-poems on the site. With a wide range of content, she soon earned over 1,500 followers.
While getting back into writing, she became acquainted with a publisher and managed to become one of their debut authors in 2022. Though she mentioned wanting her debut book to be about her parents’ journey from Vietnam, she found herself just writing and going through her emotions with that writing regarding her husband’s substance addiction and how she and her family worked through that part of their lives.
Putnam writes about not just interesting or entertaining topics, but ones that can be triggering, difficult, and serious. And that’s important.
“I hope that what [readers] get out of this book is that this is something that happens a lot. And that there is no shame in feeling the way they feel or wanting to get out of it.”
“I hope that what [readers] get out of this book is that this is something that happens a lot. And that there is no shame in feeling the way they feel or wanting to get out of it,” Putnam said. “That’s really what I hope, because if they can free themselves from an addictive state whether they are the person with the substance abuse issue or if they are the family member, I think that is the number one thing. I find that addiction itself takes not just the person but the entire family and for generations. It’s not a one time thing, this is a disease that can affect multiple generations down the road.”
Available through Putnam’s website for $20 (each book is autographed!) or Dotters Books for $15, Loose Change: Picking up the Pieces is available to anyone interested in Putnam’s storytelling through poetry or anyone who may have the desire to deal with trauma and find courage like Putnam does in her book.
Hopefully, through Putnam being so open, honest, and creative with her perspective, she will shine a light on such a heavy topic in a manner that can help someone affected by their loved one’s struggle with addiction or the individual themself.
“[It] may trigger [readers] to feel certain emotions, but at the same point it’s good to release emotions,” Putnam said. “And if they’re able to read my book and find the pieces that really resonate with them and will help make them feel stronger and less alone, I think that is really important.”