His first verses of poetry became known in a journal called Nueva Revista in Madrid, which he founded and where he published his works Crónica cuando amanece (1929) and Poema de la niebla (1930).

[1] He continued his studies in Cambridge University (1932 to 1934) and in Tours and Poitiers (1935), and he grew to love English and French literature.

He also published some of his works in Caballo Verde para la poesía, a journal directed by Pablo Neruda.

During the Civil War, Panero was arrested, taken to San Marcos de León, and accused of collecting funds for the International Red Aid; but through the mediation of his mother, along with Miguel de Unamuno and Carmen Polo, the wife of Francisco Franco- Panero's mother's cousin-, he was able to avoid legal penalties and returned to Astorga in November.

There he met and associated with some of the greatly regarded outcasts from the war, such as Luis Cernuda and Esteban Salazar Chapela.