We spent twenty minutes (okay, 21 minutes) interviewing Johnny B. Truant about his new extremely freaky extremely revolutionary program, Question the Rules.

Johnny has a partner, Lee Stranahan, who in turn interviewed Pace and me for the Question the Rules lineup, which you can access once you’re in. And trust us on this one – you want in. It’s unbelievably awesome, even though it somehow managed to make Johnny think Pace and I are one person.

But it’s okay, because we set the record straight correct.

The entire program is hella awesome, like Johnny B. and Mr. Stranahan himselves. It’s also for all types of freaks, not just entrepreneurs; there’s even a module that made me cry. Seriously great stuff; we’re proud to be included.

Also, the price quadruples tomorrow, so I recommend you check it out today.

Anyway, the entire interview with Johnny is worth listening to (naturally; why else would I bother you with it?), but the very best minute is the very last one. (; Enjoy!

I used to be terrified of travel. I wasn’t afraid of the act of traveling, but I was utterly terrified of missing my flight. I’d become a neurotic mess three days before a flight, I’d lose sleep, I’d pack 24 hours early, and I’d get to the airport five hours early. I was not a good traveling companion (with apologies to Pace. Again.).

Finally, after taking several trips with me and faced with several more, while we were in the airport securely at our gate with two hours to spare – and probably out of a fit of boredom, having to wait so damn long for our flight to board – Pace asked me, “What are you so afraid of?”

I said, “Missing my flight.”

She blinked – a lot – and asked, “Why?”

I stared at her as though she’d turned magenta and sprouted antennae. “What?! Because terrible things happen if you miss your flight!”

She said, “Like what?”

I was agog. How could Pace, a seasoned traveler, not know?! I thought about it, trying to squeeze my huge emotional reaction into words. It took me a moment, but I finally managed, “I don’t know! But I know it’s terrible! They fine you and send you home and ban you from their airlines and your entire trip is ruined and everyone gets really super mad at you!”

I realize that sounds ridiculous, but that’s what I thought. Seriously.

It was Pace’s turn to look at me like I’d sprouted antennae. “Seriously?”

I nodded.

She started giggling. I got huffy. She tried to stop, failed, then after like fifteen minutes of laughing managed to stop. “Kyeli. All they do is put you on the next flight.”

I paled, I’m sure of it. “Really?”

“Really really. They may charge you a fee, but they usually don’t even do that.”

“Really?”

She nodded. “Really. I’ve done it before. You know me, it’s not unusual for me to be late.” She shrugged. “They put me on the next flight out without so much as a stern look. That was it; they didn’t even lose my luggage.”

“Oh.” I sat for a minute, feeling kind of silly. “Oh. Well. That’s not so bad.”

Pace put a comforting arm around me. “Indeed.”

What are you afraid of that might not be so bad, once you give it a good look?

Kyeli and I have been so wrapped up in World-Changing Writing Workshop preparations lately, all our down time has consisted of us collapsing exhausted onto the couch.

Yesterday, we decided to do something creative instead.

We wrote a song.

(Did you know that Kyeli and I have a band? It’s called Sweeter Than Lazers, and it’s just one guy just the two of us.)

We’ve been working on this song for a while; yesterday we laid down the final vocal track and mastered it all together. It’s called The Second Sunrise. It’s only two minutes long, because we’d said all we wanted to say and didn’t want to lengthen it just for the sake of having a standard-length song.

Listen to The Second Sunrise by Sweeter Than Lazers (MP3, 1:52)

Pace: lyrics, composition, arrangement
Kyeli: lyrics, vocals
Thanks to Matt Blair for a helpful suggestion on mixing.

Software used: Renoise, Audacity, The Levelator

Lyrics:

    good morning
so sorry moving to the sun
    still hiding
so sorry got to run
    so crazy
so sorry moving to the sun
    so angry
    so sad that we are done

to be true
anew
what of our eyes unseeing

stew in the queue
a clue:
seeking the sun
inside of you

    good evening
still sorry moving to the sun
    no dealing
so sorry got to run
    rebuilding
so sorry moving to the sun
    things changing
    and maybe we are one

We like it a lot, and we hope you do too. (:

I feel so much better than if we had sat around and consumed visual media. It took some effort (and a little caffeine) to get over the initial resistance to doing something creative, but I’m ridiculously glad I did.

I’m happy I chose nourishing time over down time.

How can I find and grow an audience for my writing?

Is it possible to use a blog as an effective platform for writing and/or connecting with my readers?

Introducing Chris Guillebeau!

Chris Guillebeau is a writer who helps people live unconventional lives, make their own choices, and change the world.

He’s done a bunch of amazing things in his life, like his quest to visit every country in the world within 5 years (he’s two years in and two-thirds of the way there). One of the most amazing (and most relevant) is that in just one year, he has built a new career for himself and is now making a full-time living as a professional world-changing writer.

Consider Chris’s World Domination Manifesto, a perfect example of his world-changing writing. With over 100,000 downloads, it has changed the lives of thousands of people, including yourses truly — it was part of the inspiration for our very own Freak Revolution Manifesto.

Chris will teach you how to build a writing career from anywhere.

Want in? Sign up here to be the first to know when pre-registration opens!

How can I extract things that I have to share in writing that I might not even realize are special and helpful to share, because I take them for granted?

How can I channel the writing I love into something that could support me, via self-publishing, mainstream publishing, or building a blog into a business?

Introducing Danielle LaPorte!

Danielle LaPorte of White Hot Truth is a writer, inspirational speaker, marketer, and world-changer.

She headed her own communications agency for ten years, telling the stories of world-changing people, like a Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and the Pulitzer-winning co-founder of Greenpeace. She is the lead author of the Amazon bestseller Style Statement: Live By Your Own Design, and has been featured in Elle, Vogue Australia, Body+Soul, The National Post, Entertainment Tonight, and The Huffington Post.

She exudes passion and authenticity from every pore. Her goal is to liberate truth, raw reality, and grace. She believes that the desire to be real is everyone’s divine imperative. And she makes some really kick-ass note cards.

Danielle will get down with the nitty-gritty of world-changing writing. Concrete action steps to choose a topic, find an audience, and get your shit out there.

Want in? Sign up here to be the first to know when pre-registration opens!

How can I mine my humdrum life for compelling stories?

How can I get my work in front of the right readers?

Introducing Colleen Wainwright!

Colleen Wainwright is a writer-speaker-actress who also goes by “The Communicatrix” (because it’s shorter and has less hyphens).

She spent 10 years as an award-winning TV copywriter, crafting ads for big brands and writing episodes for children’s shows. Then she spent another 10 years acting in them. Finally, she realized she’d rather expire on the spot than sit through one more meeting about which way the bears danced around the cereal box. So she quit, and started something entirely different.

She now spends most of her time teaching other creative souls how to write in a way that wins them attention, work, and satisfaction, still demonstrating unreasonable optimism in the face of doom – which is one of our favorite things about her.

Colleen will teach you how to draw your right audience to you by telling a powerful, compelling story.

Want in? Sign up here to be the first to know when pre-registration opens!

How can I write boldly and persuasively while still being authentic?

What makes people feel inspired? Even better, what makes people feel inspired and then actually go do something about it?

Introducing Jonathan Fields!

About a dozen years ago, Jonathan Fields left his job as a mega-firm lawyer to rebuild his living around what he loved to do and the people he loved to be around. Since then, he’s become a husband, dad, entrepreneur, author, blogger, copywriter, marketer, speaker, and even yoga teacher.

He is the author of Career Renegade, one of the top 10 small business books of 2009. More importantly than that, his words have inspired a whole bunch of people to quit their jobs and make a living doing what they love. Now that’s world-changing writing!

Jonathan will teach you how to make people jump out of their seats and take action by integrating layers of persuasion into your writing.

Want in? Sign up here to be the first to know when pre-registration opens!

What do I do if I feel like sharing my writing with the world would be like cracking open my soul and letting everyone see it?

How do I write when I keep putting it off til tomorrow – but tomorrow never happens?

How do I write when I’m afraid, uncomfortable, or stuck?

Introducing Jennifer Louden!

Jen is a best-selling author. She wrote The Woman’s Comfort Book, The Woman’s Retreat Book, and a bunch of other great books. She’s written for Body+Soul and been quoted in Woman’s Day, People, Health, Yoga Journal, Good Housekeeping, Shape, and Ladies Home Journal. She even hosted her own radio show on Sirius, which is pretty awesome. She was totally on Oprah, and she’s been on CNN, MS-NBC, and dozens of other shows.

And she would totally smack us if she caught us writing this bio of her because she’s ridiculously humble.

But the most important thing about Jen is that when she writes, it feels like she’s writing to you. Not to an audience of millions. Just you. It feels like she’s sitting there in your living room and you’re having a lovely chat over a cup of tea.

So, yes – she’ll show you how to connect with your readers like that. She’ll also share ways to make writing comfortable instead of terrifying, how to write when you’re feeling stuck, and how to stop putting it off til tomorrow.

Want in? Sign up here to be the first to know when pre-registration opens!

Ever wondered what goes on in the minds of world-changing writers?

When you read something that changes your world, do you wish you could write like that?

What if we told you we’ve gathered five incredible writers, all of whom are world-changers themselves, and all of whom are going to share their secrets with you? What if we guaranteed you that all of your questions would get answered, all of your fears addressed, and you’d be given tips and tricks and concrete ideas to make your writing world-changing?

What if we took all your suggestions and implemented them to make sure we created a workshop that was perfect for you?

Introducing the World-Changing Writing Workshop.

On Thursdays from June 10th through July 15th, our all-star cast of world-changing writers will share their methods, habits, and what makes them tick. They’ll answer your questions. They’ll each provide two concrete things you can do to immediately improve your writing.

They will share their behind-the-scenes secrets that have made them world-changing writers.

Next week, we will announce the five writers who have joined us, one each day. On May 11th, pre-registration will open.

Will you join us?

Pace wrote a really beautiful and kick-ass poem for Magpie Girl, and it’s so beautiful and so kick-ass and so very apropos to the Freak Revolution, that I’m reposting it here for you guys.

A freak’s not a freak ’cause of piercings or hair,
Straightness or gayness or tattooed or bare.
It’s not how you look or what gender you wed;
What makes you a freak is inside of your head.

A freak is a person who doesn’t conform,
Whose thoughts wander ever afield from the norm.
It’s not a big checklist that sets you apart;
What makes you a freak is inside of your heart.