Before television and the internet, magazines were how most Americans discovered new writers. One of the most important was The Smart Set, first published in 1900. At first, the magazine printed light, entertaining stories for wealthy New York readers. But over the years, it changed. New editors took over and began looking for bolder, more original writing. They published work by unknown young authors who were experimenting with new styles. Some of those unknown writers became legends. F. Scott Fitzgerald, who would later write The Great Gatsby, published early stories in The Smart Set. The poet Ezra Pound sent poems there. So did the playwright Eugene O'Neill, who went on to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. The magazine's editors had a sharp eye for talent. They could spot a great writer before anyone else noticed. The Smart Set also changed what American writing sounded like. It favored stories that were witty and realistic instead of flowery and sentimental. Editors wanted writing that captured how real people actually talked and lived. This push toward honest, modern writing helped shape American literature for the rest of the century. The magazine stopped publishing in 1930, but its writers kept writing for decades.