On June 29, 1964, IBM launched the Magnetic Tape Selectric Typewriter (MT/ST) in Lexington, Kentucky. This machine was the first to be marketed as a 'word processor'. It recorded typed text on magnetic tape, allowing for editing and revision without retyping the entire document. This was a revolutionary step in the history of writing, moving the process from a purely physical to an electronic one.

The MT/ST was the first step in liberating writers from the tyranny of the final draft. For poets, this meant that revision, a core part of the craft, could be done more easily and extensively. While initially an office machine, it foreshadowed the word processing revolution that would transform how all writers, including poets, compose, edit, and archive their work, making the process more fluid and less laborious.