Mariano went on to become a literary translator into Tagalog. Mariano created poetry, short tales, plays, and operettas in addition to zarzuelas and translations. Mariano concentrated on topics such as romance, socioeconomic situations, and the dreams of the Filipino people. Mariano included symbolism into his art. For example, he used images of darkness and light as metaphors for good and evil. Mariano was born on April 11, 1836 in San Fernando, La Union. His father was a government employee who later became a police officer. When Mariano was eight years old, the family moved to Manila where his father was appointed governor of the Intramuros district. He attended school in the city until the age of 16 when he dropped out to work as an assistant editor at the magazine La Solidad. In 1857, Mariano published his first poem in the newspaper El Patriota. This event sparked his career as a writer. Two years later, he co-founded another publication called La Revista del Oidor with Agapito Nieves. The magazine had several contributors including Bernardo Riego de Leon, Juan Luna, and Rosendo H. Dela Cruz. In 1865, Mariano married Antonia Alba Ferrer. The couple had three children: Libertad, Antonio, and Consuelo.