Mary DeRose is a musician, student, poet, and writer at Stockton University and the Editor-in-Chief of The Argo. She sat down for an interview with copyeditor Kayla Lavecchia to discuss her journey as a student and leader, as well as her plans to continue writing.  

Writing Journey 

DeRose began her journey as a writer like many young daydreamers do—reading and falling in love with books. Reading then sparked her creativity and jumpstarted her writing stories and presenting them to her classmates in elementary school. This passion evolved overtime to include her guitar and piano, as she began to craft songs and poems.

“I kind of just experiment a lot with different forms, but I do always kind of come back to narrative writing,” said DeRose.

Goals and Future Direction 

Her love for literature came at an early age, from moments of support from teachers who would read her stories and the encouragement from friends and family around her. When choosing her degree, this motivated her to major in Literature while simultaneously completing an American Studies Master’s degree. She was drawn to this combination of subjects because of the passion that lived inside her for both history and literature. 

When discussing future goals, DeRose said, “I would love to be a professor. With the master’s degree, I’m hoping when I graduate, I can have my journalism job that I currently have […] on top of being an adjunct, and then maybe a couple years down the line, getting a PhD.”

Her ultimate dream, though, is to be a novelist and publish books. DeRose explores many forms of writing, ranging from speculative fiction and romance to literary fiction and poetry. Her poem titled “My dreams began as the guiding stars that brought me to safety” was featured in the Moonstone Arts Center’s “New Voices Anthology” for Spring 2025. It is a piece that discusses self doubt and perfectionism, but the importance of not losing passion despite the desire to give up sometimes. 

Final Reflection

“Writing is so emotional,” DeRose said. “You can take your experiences and put that on either your characters or the lyrics that you’re writing. [One’s] experiences can shape what they’re making and what they’re creating.”

This applies, in addition, to her own writing and how it connects with the audience. Ultimately, it is why her journey to becoming Editor-in-Chief has been so impactful—because of the connection between her work and the audience. 

Now, after almost two years in the role, DeRose is stepping down from her position at The Argo come the conclusion of the Fall 2025 semester. Since recently becoming a staff writer at MickeyBlog, her focus will shift towards writing articles that help people plan their Disney vacations, all while completing both of her degrees and pursuing a career as a creative.

Starting in January of 2026, Kayla Lavecchia will take over as Editor-in-Chief, ushering in a new and exciting era of Stockton’s very own independent student newspaper.