Max Wallis, a poet and former model, launched Aftershock Review in response to his struggles with mental health and addiction. After losing 12 years of his life, Wallis sought to find meaning from the ruins of his life. He moved home to Lancashire and began submitting to magazines, but only a few poems would get published. With energy to spare, he began to imagine what a space specifically for trauma poetry could look like. The idea of The Aftershock Review was born, and Wallis put the word out for submissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Work poured in from poets who were disabled, disadvantaged, ill, or excluded in various ways. The reference anthology was Al Alvarez\u2019s electrifying The New Poetry, which launched Robert Lowell, Sylvia Plath, and Anne Sexton to an enthralled readership. Bloodaxe\u2019s Staying Alive series was also hugely admired. \u201cIt\u2019s not a pity project,\u201d Wallis insists, calling it \u201cliterature forged from survival\u201d. Established poets were eager to submit, alongside rising stars and unknown writers. Inua Ellams\u2019s \u201cFuck\u201d poems meld rage, wit, and social commentary; Rhian Elizabeth\u2019s Amsterdam states baldly \u201cgirl loses her father, girl loses her mind\u201d; Golnoosh Nour\u2019s Burnt Divinities celebrates her heritage: \u201cthe glorious \/ mixture of glitter and garbage\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n