The Gorko Gazette

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thegorkogazette

10.7.2025 9:00 AM

Repeat Offenders

Gorko Serial Offender: William Taylor Jr.

THE CRIME

William writes:

On My Poem, ‘You’re Not Wilfred Owen’.

I believe in the power of poetry, and art in general, to change lives. Save them even. But I don’t need a poem to try and tell me what to believe, what is good, what is evil. At least not overtly. Be sneaky about it. I don’t like creeds, screeds, or manifestos passed off as poetry. Instead, give me something that opens up the mystery of the world in unexpected ways without preaching. Something that makes me wanna set stuff on fire and dance around in my underwear. Something to remind me that life isn’t always just waiting on death.

Read ‘You’re Not Wilfred Owen’ and more poems by William Taylor Jr. here.

William’s other favorite Gorko: I guess, off the top of my head, my favorite non-me piece in Gorko is Hugh Blanton’s Amanda Gorman review. He has the foresight and bravery to shit on popular writers before it’s trendy.

THE CRIMINAL

William Taylor Jr. lives and writes in San Francisco. He is the author of numerous books of poetry and a volume of fiction. His work has been published widely in literary journals, including Rattle, The New York Quarterly, and The Chiron Review. He was a recipient of the 2013 Kathy Acker Award and edited Cocky Moon: Selected Poems of Jack Micheline (Zeitgeist Press, 2014). His new poetry collection, The People Are Like Wolves to Me, is forthcoming from Roadside Press.

BLOODY MURDER

What is Gorko Serial Offenders? We invited more than thirty writers and artists who over the years and centuries have had their work featured in The Gorko at least a few times (a few times is 3) to submit a micro exposé on their own favorite piece. What is it, where did it come from, why did it appear in The Gorko, who cares? Here is a big thank you to all our contributors. The next Gorko Serial Offenders will likely be in 2026, when you too could receive an encrypted email from Raddy that begins, Dear Humanoid, We are delighted to inform you. If you were overlooked for this callout please bring it to the attention of Scrapes Henderson, the Gorko scapegoat, by writing to thegorkogazette@gmail.com with the words CHAW ME SCRAPES in the subject line, and we will review your case.