There’s a popular myth that hardship leads to accomplishment, and—relatedly—that the more troubled the artist, the better the work. It’s a nice idea, but a little-read book from 1963 teaches us otherwise.

Steely Dan and the sleazebag seventies, through the ironic lens of Donald Fagen’s Eminent Hipsters.

On the occasion of her online magazine’s second anniversary—and second publication, Rookie Yearbook Two—the 17-year-old empire operator talks about art, commerce, ’90s nostalgia, and getting off the internet.