Cover from the Heron Dance Art Studio Issue 2001 exploring the mindset of rebel artists.
Some people find it exceedingly difficult to get along with me and I have to choose my jobs very carefully. I have no patience with phonies, dolts, or obnoxious incompetents and I take some pride in the fact that these people invariably dislike me. I admire perfection or any effort toward it and I would not work with anyone who disagreed with me on this score.
- Hunter S. Thompson, in a job application as a young man.
That came after, I think, a short stint as a writer at a bowling magazine. That belief in himself eventually allowed him to put some fascinating if unorthodox work out into the world.
For more, see Hunter S. Thompson and the Origins of Gonzo Journalism
See also Norman Maclean Responds To Rejection and Maniacs Seeking the New Encounter.