Top Ten Literary Advances since 1985

10. creative-writing classes encouraged en masse to get the experience of submitting

9. chain store magazine racks where ZYZZYVA can be displayed spine-out in the very lowest right-hand corner

8. website disclosure of guidelines enables writers to submit without risk of intimacy

7. glamour of being a litmag publisher lures rich people into starting ones of their own (Glimmer Train, Zoetrope, Tin House)

6. hypertext fades, e-zines fade, slams fade, blogs rule

5. digital printing makes four-color covers affordable even for poor litmags

4. desktop publishing makes sending galleys to writers a cinch

3. spell-check saves editors from letting so many typose slip by

2. if you've read this far and want a free copy of zyzzyva, just e-mail me your address, using the button to the right of this post. no charge, no obligation. this offer good in domestic U.S. while supplies last

1. no-lick envelopes (because tongue-sealing the slush pile of non-clasp return envelopes is over the long haul a bit icky)