If you're a freelancer hoping to branch into radio work, chances are you've considered or attempted to pitch Public Radio International's fine program "This American Life." Before submitting, I'm sure you familiarized yourself with the show's submission policies on their site and read up on how to pitch from the Mediabistro guide.

Now, assuming you do have a story and a pitch good enough for the program, what should you know about the actual process of getting your piece produced?

The reason why I'm writing about this is because producing a piece for "This American Life" can be a lot different than contributing to a different NPR or PRI program. As opposed to heading into your local NPR affiliate and reading a few takes into a mic, it can be a lot more rewarding and a lot more difficult.

"Fortunately, I had a lot of talented producers there to help me hold my hand," says Chicago writer Jessica Riddle, whose piece "Heather Help Me" ran in 2003. "However, it was exhausting, and sometimes uncomfortable." For her piece, Riddle needed to ask more personal questions than she was used to as a writer, which is something to keep in mind: if your story contains even the slightest hint of sensitive material, be ready to plumb it. "I was telling someone's personal story, and TAL wanted the truth of the whole piece." Riddle found herself asking her interviewees delicate questions: with producers on the line, sometimes asking the questions themselves.

Fortunately, the editing process is also collaborative. "I was involved in the editing process, giving my opinion on what should get cut or changed, and I wrote the narrative of the piece with Ira [Glass]."

"We normally record the voice tracks last," says Todd Bachmann, senior editor at the show. "We will have our writer head into a local affiliate and record over an ISDN line, and then we'll work on edits together over the phone. One of the keys is that we don't like stories with a running monologue. And it's very rare lately that we accept people's fiction: we want good stories with a good narrative arc."

The key is flexibility. One writer might have months to edit their script but in Riddle's case, the producers found that her story fit in well with a theme that they wanted to air soon, so she found herself completing her entire story within a week's time.

"Normally, how long it takes to produce the piece depends on the story, and how fleshed out it is and how much editing needs to be done," says Bachmann.

The payoffs in the end are good, though. "It's a great way to get your feet wet in radio," says Riddle, who also found that the show compensates well. "I got $1200 for the piece, and an additional $1000 from Warner Brothers for first-option rights," as the story garnered interest from a screenwriter.

"We discuss money once it comes up," says Bachmann, "but as a former freelancer, Ira is adamant that our writers are paid well. New writers will make less than established ones, but we pay the best of any public radio show."

By the way, if you do find yourself working on a radio piece where you are expected to do all the editing, I highly recommend this personal piece, packed with practical tips, written by Whitney Pastorek.