Folks often tell us that GFJ is the job searching resource they always wanted, but never even knew was possible. That's how we feel about cookNscribble as a food writing resource. And to think that they created an immersive study session where you can hone your aspiring media skills and come out on the other side with a new portfolio of work? Well, it sounds almost too good to be true. Just like Remy Robert herself, who shares her story with refreshing honesty and contagious optimism.

Want to join Remy as a Longhouse alum? The deadline to apply for the 2014 summer session is February 15th!

When did you know that you wanted to work in food?

I was born and raised in New Orleans, where a love of food is in our blood. The joke is that we spend each meal talking about where we'll eat next, which isn't far from the truth. In high school, I wanted to be an anthropologist until one night, when I was at dinner and mid-exclamation over the king crab in passionfruit butter, my friend's mom said, "Are you going to write all this down?" At the time, I'd read and fallen in love with Ruth Reichl and M.F.K. Fisher, but it wasn't until that moment that I grasped the fact that I could get paid to talk about food.

How did you get your current good food job?

I found out about the LongHouse Scholars program through a dear family friend. This was in conjunction with LongHouse Food Revivals, which are gatherings of food thought leaders organized by Molly O'Neill's organization, cookNscribble. What grabbed me about the scholars' program was its curriculum, which was dreamily holistic: it covered not just writing, of which I've done plenty, but also documentary film, radio, photography-things outside my comfort zone. Somehow, in the midst of college graduation chaos, I painstakingly completed my application and found myself two months later at Molly's house in the tiny town of Rensselaerville, NY, surrounded by eight other fabulous scholars, Molly's two Muppet-esque bearded collies, and mountains in every direction.

As for my current food jobs, I do social media for a fabulous start-up, Sweet Roots NYC, and write for Serious Eats, and I'm headed to Food52 this month. Come to think of it, I got those jobs in much the same way: by writing to people who are doing things I love and asking if I can join their club. And by being willing (and thrilled) to work in exchange for food.

How did your previous work or life experience prepare you for a good food job?

A lifetime's worth of impassioned food discussion (involving critique, analysis, musings, culinary tourism, incoherent exclamations of joy, and more!) is pretty good prep. When it comes to actually pitching and writing interesting things, there's a snowball effect; the more I read and write, the easier it is to find and catch those potential stories that might've otherwise flown under my radar. The trick, I've found, is to not let myself preemptively write anything off as dumb.

What was the greatest obstacle you had to overcome in pursuing your Good Food Job dream?

Last year, as a senior in college, I had a million moments of existential doubt from the sidelines while my friends went to a million career fairs in their starched suits and handed their résumés to bigwig consulting firms and sexy new companies. On the outside, I was like, "Psh, I'm going to follow my dreams!" but internally, I was terrified of the possibility that I was being naïve and short-sighted. Six months into my entrance to the real world, though, I'm happy to report that I don't regret a thing. It's great to be in an industry where porchetta is my casual weekday lunch.

What can you identify as the greatest opportunities in food right now?

I'm inspired by food's intersection with social entrepreneurship. Because food is such an integral, multifaceted part of human life and nature, there are tons of entry points, from urban farms to facilitators like GoodEggs, all geared toward the ultimate goal of a sustainable, holistic, fair, and closed-loop food system. The work is important, but it's also hip.

If you could be compensated for your work with something other than money, what would it be?

This one's easy since I don't make money for my food work! In this glamorous "Paying My Dues" chapter of my career, I'm compensated with a plenitude of bylines, the occasional kitchen gadget, and proficiency with just about every blogging platform out there. And, of course, with food. No complaints here.