"I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence, or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me."

Hunter S. Thompson, perhaps now recognizable through Johnny Depp's film adaptation of his famous novel (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, 1998), is more than grave-stuffing. However, he may not agree.

Thompson was born to an unremarkable family in Kentucky, bouncing around from robbery to military service before finding his true calling: journalism. Over the course of a career, he pioneered a new style of writing and forever enshrined himself as a legend. His career as an author began when he covered the Hell's Angels: a famous motorcycle gang that prided itself on the otherworldly aggression of its members. Thompson lived with the gang as he wrote his first novel titled "Hell's Angels: The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs." Eventually, Thompson would write about motor races and presidential elections alike. Through it all, he was unrelenting in his style.

Thompson created gonzo journalism, a style of writing with a name to match its absurdity. Hunter S. Thompson was no reporter. In his stories, he invited the viewer to enjoy the world through his own demented perspective. He was the main character - never the topic he covered. His own aimless trials through drug-fueled wastelands were filled with insight but they never took their foot off the gas.

Thompson's most famous novel, "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas," is his coverage of an off-road race. You won't discover that, though, until he finishing cataloging enough drugs to kill a village, demonic hallucinations, and a 'lawyer' who manages to be just as insane as he is. Thompson's novels are fun - they are filled with such insanity that they almost make the reader feel that he may have been slipped a few of Thompson's pills before beginning. At the same time, they never falter from their cold gaze at Thompson's America.

Hunter S. Thompson was a man full of anger. His eventual suicide could hardly have come as a surprise. The worlds he created weren't imaginary. They were a warped mirror held to our America, showing us where Hunter saw depravity. Hunter saw the world as a series of random collisions and treated it as such. If there were drugs to be done and fun to be had, there was Hunter S. Thompson. Not exactly a party boy, but certainly a man outside the law, Thompson was as unapologetic in life as he was in writing. There was no use for rules in Hunter's world. Whether that meant a missed deadline or an authentic voice that spit at reason, well, that depended on the day.

"A man must choose a path which will let his abilities function at maximum efficiency toward the gratification of his desires"

This is not our image of Thompson. There are no hallucinations or yellow pills, but this is still Thompson. His stories of illegal adventures are kaleidoscopes that hint at a man obsessed with individuality. There is no reason to be anyone other than yourself. The responsibility is on the person to find out who exactly that is.

This quote comes from Thompson's letter to a friend who wrote to him for advice. The letter is a necessary read for young people looking for a path. It captures the essence of Thompson's writing: discover who you are and what you want, then chase it until you die. This is a tall order. It's difficult to tell a drowning man to swim for unseen shores... all the more when he doesn't realize he's drowning.

Thompson led a relentless life that was decidedly unlike anyone before him. His choices didn't come from the behest of his parents, friends, or circumstance. They were his own. For all his mistakes, he was a man of his own creation. Nothing else, I'm sure, could have made him happy.

But, you: whose life are you living?

To enjoy Hunter's work: "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas " and " The Rum Diary " are a good start.