Let's Talk Media with Vedant Akhauri

How do you transition from a 20-year career as a practicing pathologist to writing medical thrillers? In this episode of Let's Talk Media, the podcast about the careers and chaos in media, host Vedant Akhauri sits down with author Devan Greene. With a PhD in biochemistry and decades of hands-on medical experience, Devan writes gripping thrillers that combine real-world science with high-stakes crime (WARNING: The plots are NOT gory, but contain inherently dark and heavy subject matter).

In this episode, we discuss her following books:

• Unnatural: The first book in the Erica Rosen MD trilogy. The plot focuses on human embryonic genetic engineering, specifically following a Chinese program attempting to mutate a specific gene to create super-athletes.
• Unwitting: The second book in the Erica Rosen MD trilogy. It explores the topic of autism, featuring a severely autistic character (based on Greene's own son) who struggles with communication but holds crucial information about s*icide b*mbers extorting money.
• Unforeseen: The third and final book in the Erica Rosen MD trilogy. This thriller tackles the dark side of the pharmaceutical industry, focusing on a corrupt company that cuts dangerous corners.
• Ties That Kill: This novel centers on DNA fingerprinting and features a chemistry professor as an amateur sleuth. The story follows an adopted man who uses a genealogy website to find his half-siblings, only to discover someone is murdering them.
• The Organ Broker: This novel explores a dark concept regarding organ donation, specifically investigating what might happen if the organs of executed inmates on death row were made available for harvesting.
• Happy Sun Farm: Behind the Facade: This novel deals with bioterrorism, agricultural genetic modification, and a secret, foreign-owned bio-lab in California housing genetically engineered rats and dangerous viruses.

• Rhino Horn Underground (Releases August 25, 2026): The story follows a female protagonist and hinges on a unique, science-based idea for how to actually save rhinos from being wiped out. Devan is also currently looking for a female audiobook narrator with a wide vocal range for her upcoming August release—contact her through her website if you have the experience and equipment!

We also discuss the following:

• The 5-Year Pivot: How Devan mapped out a five-year plan to retire from her demanding medical career and transition into a full-time author, adhering to a strict, disciplined routine of writing 1,100 words a day.
• Predicting the Headlines: The eerie prescience of writing heavily researched medical thrillers. Devan discusses writing about a secret foreign-owned bio-lab in California just before a real one was discovered, and exploring human embryonic gene editing shortly before it made real-world international news.
• Personal Vulnerability in Thrillers: How Devan translated deeply personal experiences into her novel Unwitting, basing the main character on her own severely autistic son to explore how individuals with intense communication barriers could be exploited by bad actors.
• The Amateur Sleuth Genre: Why Devan grounds her books in realism by using pediatricians, chemistry professors, and farmers as her protagonists, rather than relying on standard police procedurals.

You can learn more about Devan's work and sign up for her newsletter at devengreene.com (remember the 'e' at the end of Greene!).

All her books are available wherever you buy books, including Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating to be notified of future episodes. You can subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and follow the show on Instagram @letstalkmediava.

New episodes drop on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Are your dreams ever past their expiration date? For Dublin-based singer-songwriter Garrett Anthony Rice, the answer is a resounding no.

In this episode of the creator-focused podcast, Let's Talk Media, host Vedant Akhauri sits down with Rice to uncover one of the most unbelievable underdog stories in the modern music industry.

After putting his artistic dreams on hold in the mid-1990s to pay his mortgage and raise a family, Rice spent 30 years away from music. Following a post-COVID life reassessment, he finally decided to record the songs he had been quietly holding onto.

Releasing his debut album, titled Reflections Part Two, The Very Best Of, under the alias "i Consult," Rice independently racked up 150,000 streams across 93 countries despite not even having an Instagram account to promote it.

Just two months later, his music caught the ear of legendary producer Chris Potter - who has worked with icons like The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, and The Verve. Potter immediately cleared his schedule to work with Rice. The result? Equinox - an ambitious 18-track project that makes Rice the first solo artist in musical history to release a double album for their second record.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The 30-Year Hiatus & DIY Success: How Rice completely bypassed traditional industry gatekeepers to launch a global music career later in life.
• A Historic Collaboration: What it's like going from complete obscurity to recording in the home studio of one of the world's greatest producers in just four months.
• Unconventional Songwriting: Rice’s highly unique approach to crafting songs, from building his own guitar chords from scratch, to structuring an anti-war anthem like James Joyce's famously complex stream-of-consciousness novel, Ulysses.
• "My Sons" & Classic Rock Legends: The story behind the song he wrote for Peggy Gallagher pleading for her sons (Liam and Noel Gallagher of Oasis) to reconcile, plus an incredible one-take studio moment paying tribute to his idol, Jimi Hendrix.
• The "Dumbed Down" State of Modern Pop: Rice’s fierce, unfiltered critique of modern acoustic music, and why he believes the industry has replaced the otherworldly magic of artists like David Bowie and John Lennon with a boring, algorithmic formula purely designed to generate streams.
• Recorded in October 2025: Garrett has since released more music worth checking out.

Stream his new singles from Equinox on Spotify under Garrett Anthony Rice. Stream his debut album Reflections Part Two, The Very Best Of on Spotify under his alias I Consult.

Follow him on Instagram & TikTok: @Garrett AnthonyRice and on Facebook: Garett Anthony Rice.

If you like this podcast, please subscribe and leave a rating. You can subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can follow the show on Instagram @letstalkmediava.

New episodes drop on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Welcome to Let's Talk Media, the podcast series with conversations from the media and entertainment industry! Today, host Vedant Akhauri interviews crisis PR veteran turned debut author, John David, about his brand-new investigative thriller, The Bystander.

If you're obsessed with true crime vibes, media manipulation, and high-stakes conspiracies, this book needs to be on your reading list immediately.

• What is The Bystander About? Our main character is Pete Lamaster, a TV reporter who is just trying to cover a pre-game party for the Florida-Georgia football game when an active shooter situation suddenly goes down. Pete catches the whole thing on camera—including the exact moment an armed civilian takes out the shooter. The footage goes viral, but Pete quickly realizes that the narrative is totally skewed, dragging him into a dark, twisty conspiracy where nothing is what it seems
• Ripped from the Headlines: The inciting incident is heavily inspired by the tragic 2022 Indiana mall shooting, where a young armed bystander named Elisjsha Dicken stopped an attacker. While the opening mirrors reality, John promises the rest of the book's conspiracy is fiction.
• No Politics: The book touches on polarizing, heavy topics like the Second Amendment, gun rights, and veteran suicide. But don't stress. It's not an ideological tale. It’s designed to be a fast-paced, page-turning piece of entertainment that doesn't push any directional agenda.
• The Romance Arc: To balance the heavy suspense, there’s a romance subplot with Police Lieutenant Rebecca. She also acts as the ultimate plug for explaining police procedures so the story stays super realistic.
• Awards Season: This debut is already crushing it, winning the 25 Page Turner Award for mystery and landing as a finalist for the Story Trade Book Award.

You can support local indie bookstores by buying The Bystander on Bookshop.org, or grab it from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

The Lemaster Files series is officially a trilogy. Book two, ⁠The Pawn⁠, is available now and takes Pete all the way to Singapore after his college buddy "Uncle Scotty" is framed and arrested for drugs.

You can find John on Instagram/Twitter/Facebook @byjohndavid. Get exclusive behind-the-scenes content on IG at @letstalkmediava.

Did teenagers in the 1970s really not have supervision? What darker secrets were hiding behind the nostalgic peace, love, and unsupervised drive-in keg parties?

In this episode of Let's Talk Media, host Vedant Akhauri sits down with best-selling novelist Laura Van Wormer. She's best known as the author of the Alexandra Chronicles, which follows the lives of media industry professionals, and the Sally Harringon mystery series, which features a broadcast journalist (both universes are connected!).

We explore her scripted podcast dramedy, The Class of '74. Set in a fictional Connecticut suburb in 1971, this narrative soap opera follows 15-year-old Cynthia Skyler as she navigates a wild, unregulated era completely without cell phones or the internet. It was a time when parents had no idea where their kids were, and teenagers routinely drank and drove long before the days of Mothers Against Drunk Driving. But beneath the fun, period-piece nostalgia lies a gritty exploration of a society in massive transition.

Laura reveals exactly how she weaves explosive true history and raw teenage rebellion into this addictive audio drama!

In this episode about The Class of '74, we discuss:

• The Dark Realities Swept Under the Rug: Discover why Laura intentionally explores the hidden traumas of the 70s. In a time when eating disorders, severe depression, and child abuse "didn't exist," teenage girls were left to starve themselves and suffer in absolute silence.
• Unchecked Bullies & High School Dangers: Hear how the podcast tackles the extreme homophobia and unchecked high school bullies who literally locked kids in locker rooms for torture. But, rest assured, Laura promises the show delivers them ultimate karma, and the bullies get exactly what's coming to them!
• Living Through Explosive History: Learn how the characters' fictional lives collide with massive real-world events from the time period, from the terrifying media blackout during the Attica prison rebellion and the anxiety of the Vietnam War draft lotteries, to 16-year-old Chrissie Evert revolutionizing women's tennis.
• The Liberation Generation: Why the Class of '74 was so unique. They were the very first generation of young women explicitly told they could grow up to be whatever they wanted.
• Interactive True Crimes (The Detention Club): Find out how Laura actively uses her Patreon community, "The Detention Club," to let listeners shape the story.

You can listen to the first season of The Class of '74 and join "The Detention Club" Patreon at www.classof74podcast.com. You can also request Laura to join the private Facebook group to share your own untold high school stories.

Whether you lived through the 1970s or just love nostalgic period dramas, this episode is your ultimate time machine!

Are record deals a gamble? How do you survive the realities of the music industry without losing your soul?

In this episode of Let's Talk Media, host Vedant Akhauri sits down with Emmy-winning musician, songwriter, and SAG actor Scot "Little Bihlman" to expose the gritty, unpolished realities of the entertainment business.

From playing alongside music legends like Jelly Roll, John Fogerty, and B.B. King, to navigating the empty promises of Nashville record labels, Scott holds absolutely nothing back.

Scot breaks down his unique genre of "motorcycle poetry for truth seekers" and reveals the harsh survival tactics every creative needs to hear.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The 90% Rule of Fake Record Deals: Why almost no label actually delivers what they promise on paper, and the untold secret to actually making money in music.
• The Sync Licensing Goldmine: Stop sitting in your room hoping to get discovered! Learn why you need to put 50% of your energy into publishing, and how Scott hustled to get his catalog featured on over 30 hit TV shows like Sons of Anarchy, Burn Notice, and All My Children.
• The Shocking Secret of "Motorcycle Zen": Learn how riding a Harley at top speeds forces a meditative presence that shuts down the brain. Scott reveals how this extreme focus generates 90% of his lyrics and riffs, and acts as his ultimate shield against an industry plagued by massive egos and heavy drug use.
• Why Perfection is a Lie (Embracing the "Road Rash"): Scott refuses to wipe the dust, sweat, and fingerprints off his guitars. Discover how true art must always reflect the scars of the human condition.
• How to Survive The Industry: The brutally honest truth about why you can never be a one-trick pony, why you must always be a songwriter, and the daily choice to actively live in joy so the business doesn't beat you down.

• You can stream Scot's solo, Heavy Head, on Spotify.

• Catch Scott acting and roughing up Nicolas Cage in the upcoming Spider-Man Noir series!

• Learn more about his hard rock blues trio, Grinder Blues

If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating to be notified of future episodes. You can subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and follow the show on Instagram @letstalkmediava.

New episodes drop on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

In this episode of Let's Talk Media, host Vedant Akhauri sits down with award-winning author Teri M. Brown to discuss her upcoming midlife fiction novel, Peg Unhinged, releasing on April 21st.

Teri shares her deeply inspiring personal journey of reinvention (TRIGGER WARNING).

After leaving a 14-year emotionally abusive marriage in her mid-50s, she felt broken and assumed she was destined to just sit in a rocking chair and wait to be a grandmother. Instead, she and her new husband embarked on a 3,102-mile tandem bicycle journey across the United States. This epic trek made her realize she could do anything she put her mind to, propelling her to fulfill her childhood dream of becoming an author.

In this episode, we discuss:

• A Second Coming of Age: How Peg Unhinged explores the metamorphosis of midlife, encouraging women whose kids have left the nest to stop worrying about fitting in, start making waves, and figure out what they truly want.
• Tackling Menopause with Humor: Why Teri uses comedy to take the teeth and fear out of aging, including brain fog, hot flashes, and the awkward, messy realities of online dating in your 50s.
• Challenging Ageist Stereotypes: Deconstructing the societal double standards where men are allowed to gray and gain a pot belly, while women are relentlessly pressured to remain flawless and youthful.
• A Prolific Writing Career: Teri's diverse writings, ranging from her WWII historical fiction An Enemy Like Me to her children's book, Little Lola and Her Big Dream.

Whether you are navigating midlife yourself or are simply looking to expand your reading list with rare, fully-fleshed-out narratives about older women, this episode is an uplifting and hilarious listen.

To learn more about Teri's work, buy her books, or check out her podcast Online for Authors, visit her website at terimbrown.com

If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating to be notified of future episodes. You can subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and follow the show on Instagram @letstalkmediava.

New episodes drop on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

In this episode of Let's Talk Media, host Vedant Akhauri sits down with engineer and author Bob Labbe to discuss his book, Putting by the Numbers.

For decades, golf has relied on the traditional "touch and feel" method for putting, a skill often dominated by touring pros. But what if lowering your score comes down to simple math and physics? Bob shares how he used his 50-year engineering background to develop a quantitative, highly reproducible method for lag putting that can shave 4 to 5 strokes off your game, regardless of your skill level.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The Engineer's Approach: How to replace intuition with a concrete plan using force, friction, and kinetic energy.
• Individual Power Factor (IPF): How to calculate the exact distance a ball will travel based on every inch you retract your putter.
• The 1935 Stimpmeter: How Edward Stimson's historic invention to measure green speeds at the Oakmont US Open inspired Bob's quantitative method.
• Cracking the Code: Debunking commentator Johnny Miller's claim that a 93-foot putt can't be taught, and why putting actually accounts for up to 50% of a standard 72-stroke game.

Whether you are a recreational golfer, amateur, or a professional, this episode will give you a new plan of attack for the green.

To learn more about Bob's methodology, watch his free training videos, or buy the book, visit boblabbe.com or puttingbythenumbers.com.

If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating to be notified of future episodes. You can subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and follow the show on Instagram @letstalkmediava.

In this special episode of Let's Talk Media, host Vedant Akhauri sits down with a true cultural architect: Stan Lai . Dubbed by BBC as the “the best Chinese language playwright and director in the world," Lai has fundamentally reshaped the landscape of modern Chinese-language performance. In this episode, Lai breaks down his four-decade-long career bridging the Eastern and Western theatrical worlds. We dive deep into:

• The Dual Lens: How growing up bicultural in America and Taiwan created an "identity crisis" that ultimately became his greatest creative superpower.
• Building an Industry: What it was like trying to spark a contemporary art scene in 1980s Taiwan under martial law, and how his 1985 debut, That Evening, We Performed Cross Talk (那一夜，我们说相声), revived a dying comedic art form and sold on over two million cassette tapes.
• Masterpieces of the Stage: The craft behind his most iconic works, including blending extreme tragedy and farce in the 40-year global phenomenon Secret Love in Peach Blossom Land (暗戀桃花源), and staging karma and memory in his massive eight-hour epic, A Dream Like a Dream (如夢之夢).
• The CreativitRy: Lai's holistic philosophy on why true art requires learning both the "method" and the "wisdom" of a craft , and his number one piece of advice for creators: never write what you think the audience wants to see .

Whether you are a theater fanatic, a filmmaker, or simply an artist looking to unleash your own creative power, this episode is filled with profound wisdom.

Follow the show on Instagram at @letstalkmediava for behind-the-scenes moments and updates.

New episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Host and former theater kid Vedant Akhauri sits down with actor and writer Sean Gordon to dive into the beautiful, chaotic world of independent theater.

Sean is the brains and performer behind Walter Schlinger's Romeo and Juliet. He also played Aaron in the YouTube web-series, Why Try, written and created by Aidan Kushner - who I interviewed in a previous episode.

The play's online synopsis: "In this meta-theatrical solo performance, Walter reckons with the role our mentors play in our development and attempts to provide insight into the world's most famous love story. While desperately trying to share his work with anyone who will listen, he grapples with the notions of youth, tragedy, and validation."This play premieres at the 2026 New York City Fringe Festival (with an encore run already booked at the Tank Theater!).

In this episode, we explore how Sean and director Dixie O'Connell deconstructed the world's most famous love story, transforming it into a real-time, one-hour dissertation that spirals out of control in-story.

Sean unpacks how the play mirrors the universal "crucible" of your 20s, dealing with unmet expectations, the role of mentors, and the romanticized doom of the struggling artist" narrative.

We also discuss Two-Way Glass Productions' mission to completely shatter the fourth wall and make the audience an active participant in the room.

But this isn't just an interview about a play - it's a 360-degree evergreen conversation on surviving Fringe theater. Sean reveals the grueling logistics of independent art: from the democratic lottery-submission process that removes industry gatekeepers, to the intense pressure of 15-minute load-ins and three-hour tech rehearsals.

Credits for Walter Schlinger's Romeo and Juliet (as of April 2026):

• Lainey Helmers (Producer)
• Sadie Kalinowska-Werter (Stage Manager)
• Reed Gordon (Set and Projection Design)
• Ali Caruso (Costumer Design)
• Sean Gordon (Writer/Performer)
• Dixie O'Connell (Director)

Listeners in April 2026 can check out more about the play at FRIGID New York here and at The Tank here.

Follow @letstalkmediava on Instagram. Subscribe to get notified of the latest episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Thank you for turning in as we cross 150 episodes!

What if dyslexia isn't a neurological deficit, but a visionary superpower? In this episode of Let's Talk Media, host Vedant Akhauri sits down with Hillary Summerbell, CEO of the literary technology company Summerbell, to discuss a groundbreaking innovation in media accessibility.

After struggling with severe visual dyslexia and made to feel stupid in a traditional education system, Hillary spent 20 years as a successful interior designer. Her life changed five years ago when she accidentally discovered she could read fluidly - and comprehend deeply - when text was presented in a soft curve rather than a straight line. This profound realization led to the creation of a software featuring the patented "positional reading arc," which mirrors the natural movement of the human eye to instantly calm visual processing.

Backed by a Johns Hopkins University study showing a significant 9% improvement in reading comprehension, Summerbell is redefining how neurodivergent individuals engage with digital text.

In this episode, we deep-dive into:

• Reframing Dyslexia: Why society needs to stop treating learning differences as a deficit that needs remediation, and start recognizing the spatial and visionary capabilities of the dyslexic brain.
• Ditching the "Audio Crutch": How modern accessibility trends (like audiobooks and text-to-voice) often prevent dyslexic individuals from developing fundamental reading skills, and why Summerbell intentionally removes audio features to force visual engagement.
• Systemic Failures & Accessibility Laws: The glaring disparities in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regarding accommodations for physical disabilities versus learning differences, and Hillary's fight to make reading a fundamental right rather than a privilege gatekept by private tutors.
• Transforming EdTech: How Summerbell functions as a web browser and Chrome extension, allowing users to curve any text on the worldwide internet, complete with AI-integration for guided reading sessions.
• The Power of Global Media: How Vedant's own 20-year passion for understanding learning disabilities was originally sparked by a 2007 Bollywood film, Taare Zameen Par, bringing this episode's topic full circle for him.

To learn more about the positional reading arc or to download the tool, visit www.summerbell.com.

Follow @letstalkmediava on Instagram. Subscribe to get notified of the latest episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays.