If you do not want to use the wet rags around your cake pan, (this only works with round, square or oval pans, character pans have to many corners to put wet towels around), put a Pizza stone in the bottom of your oven.
Try to keep it away from the pilot light, like putting it on risers. If you have an old oven, the pizza stone will help to keep an even temperature in an uneven oven.
If you put a pizza stone in your oven and it breaks, leave it there and get another one, this will increase the chances of better - even temperature also.
Source: This information comes from the years of baking cakes for weddings, baby showers, birthdays, etc. and from teaching cake decorating.
By Mary from Atascadero, CA
I put a small oven safe dish of water in the bottom of the oven when I preheat it and keep it there through the baking time. That is enough moisture for mine to come out flat no matter what shape the pan is. Penny
THANK YOU, thank you! I have wondered for years how to eliminate that big ol' hump on the top of the cake.