.png){kind=logo}
Adam Ross
Adam Ross is a novelist and Editor of The Sewanee Review, America's oldest continuously published literary quarterly, a role he's held since 2016. His debut novel, Mr. Peanut, was a New York Times Notable Book, and his most recent novel, Playworld, was named one of the best books of the year by People magazine and Town & Country, winning the 2025 Los Angeles Times-Christopher Isherwood Prize.
Fearless and Exacting: Modernizing a 130-Year-Old Institution
When Adam took over The Sewanee Review, a magazine that had operated under just one editor for the previous 43 years, he redesigned it for the first time in over 70 years, put an image on the cover for the first time in the publication's history, and deliberately broadened whose voices appeared in its pages, women, writers of color, unknowns published alongside literary stars, while insisting that what must endure is an uncompromising commitment to excellent writing. His own creative process embodies patience over speed: his debut novel took 13 years to write, and he speaks candidly about the personal and professional challenges of a long-haul creative career. That combination, reinventing a legacy institution without diluting its reputation, offers a distinctive outside perspective for HR and culture audiences on modernizing something valuable without breaking what made it valuable in the first place.
Topics Adam speaks on
- Modernizing a legacy institution without diluting its reputation
- Staying "fearless and exacting" through change
- The discipline of a long, patient creative process
- Broadening who gets a voice inside an established institution
- Storytelling and narrative craft
Sessions with Achieve
Adam is a featured presenter on the Achieve webcast "Spark Series Webcast: A Masterclass with Best-Selling Author Adam Ross" (November 13, 2025), alongside moderator Jody Ordioni of Brandemix. The session brings a literary and creative perspective to the Achieve Engagement audience, exploring the discipline and craft behind Adam's writing and editorial work.
Connect
Want more on what it takes to modernize a legacy institution without losing what made it valuable? Learn more about the Achieve Leadership Network.