Juniper Rogers has been the Folk of ‘Noke section editor for over three years now, and as of this publication, we bid a farewell to a longstanding Brackety-Ack member. Juniper is from Charlotte, North Carolina and is majoring in Creative Writing with a concentration in publishing and editing. Juniper has also been very active on campus and in the community, operating as secretary of the Pride Club for the 2025 calendar year. She also enjoys attending trivia night on Mondays, alongside Salem city council meetings every other Monday, in regard to saying: “I love them and highly encourage everyone to attend.” She has also been a member of the Roanoke Review: “I’ve been an intern with Roanoke Review the literary magazine on campus. And I highly encourage anybody who just enjoys reading in general, enjoys critiquing books and poems, to reach out to Dr. Garrison to look into being a part of it next year.”
In our interview, Juniper discussed her initial journey with the Brackety-Ack: “In spring of my senior year of high school, I came and was interviewed by the editor-in-chief at the time, to be hired as a staff reporter. I wrote for the Maroon’s Talk section, doing whatever my editor asked of me, and then my editor was going to be a December graduate. So, they would need someone to replace him as section editor for Folks at ‘Noke in the spring. So then on the last layout of December, they had me watch and learn that same way you [Vance] are now. Then, I took it over the spring of freshman year, and I’ve been doing it ever since.”
Standing alongside this section for so long, Juniper also shared a reflection on the paper and the people she’s worked with: “I’ve been able to have this section be my child in a way that I never expected it to be. It’s just grown into where I’ve created what I’ve expected of it, and then to imagine it growing more is such an entertaining thought that I look forward to seeing.”
Juniper also shared some highlights in her time doing interviews: “I’ve really enjoyed interviewing everyone, but I’d say a big one that I’m both really happy that I was even able to do it and happy that it came out as it did, was when I interviewed the Mayor of Salem, Renée Turk, in the fall of ‘24 leading up to the election. I met her for a drink at Olde Salem Brewing, and it was great to learn about her background and journey from graduating here to local politics.”
In the realm of creative ventures, we discussed an exciting development Juniper’s writing journey: “My book that I’m working on for a senior seminar is a collection of poems that’s supposed to come together in a way that a novel would. Each poem can be a stand-alone work, but in the order that I’m presenting it, there is a plot line that follows from one poem to the next. I fully intend to publish it one day, super excited for that.”
She also shared a little bit about inspiration: “I think my biggest inspiration is music. It’s really often that I’ll listen to a song, and I’ll think ‘Ooh, that would be really good in a poem’, and then I base a poem off that lyric.”
To other aspiring or existing writers for both inside and outside the Brackety-Ack, Juniper’s insight would be to write “even the most heavy-handed topics with some level of measured whimsy and/or lyricism.” As a writer, I believe this to be some very good advice.
A signature question that Juniper always included in interviews was “what is your favorite scent.” A very specific and sort of random question that stems perfectly from that idea of measured whimsy. To flip the script, Juniper answered in response to her very own question with “the scent of old books.” A very fitting answer from a distinguished writer.
“I am incredibly thankful for my roommates, Adriana and Andrea, as they’ve been my best friends for several years now, and they mean the world to me. Also, our fourth who graduated last year, Jennifer, I also miss her greatly. And then I want to shout out the marmots, those who joined me on my May Term, love y’all. I also want to thank Dr. Hartman, Dr. Garrison, and Dr. Millbrodt, for their tremendous guidance in my years of becoming a better person and writer. I want to thank Zachary Bayers for his incredible leadership this past year with the paper. Finally, I want to extend my gratitude to my family and all the friends I have made here, I can’t imagine these past four years with each and every one of y’all!”
Vance Redd
Folk of ‘Noke Editor
