Success Story Interview - Nicole Wilbur

An Interview with Nicole Wilbur (monetSlinky on QT) upon receiving an offer of representation from agent Kate Erickson of Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency.

05/12/2026

QT: Can you tell us a little bit about the book for which you've found representation? What inspired you to write it?

Nicole Wilbur:
Some Kind of Criminal is a YA heist thriller in which an uptight, rule-following violinist agrees to steal a legendary violin in Florence in exchange for a performance opportunity that will redeem her biggest failure. She thinks she'll keep her hands clean, get in, and take a future in music out...until she falls for the crew's mastermind.
The idea came to me when I was living in Florence for a month. I was wearing heels and for some reason running on the cobblestones. I started to think...why might someone run around here in HEELS? I was surrounded by museums at the time, and it spiraled!

QT: How long have you been writing?

Nicole Wilbur:
Since I could hold a pen.

QT: How long have you been working on this book?

Nicole Wilbur:
I got the idea in 2021 and had the first draft by March of 2022. It's gone through many rounds of editing and rewrites since.

QT: Was there ever a time you felt like giving up, and what helped you to stay on course?

Nicole Wilbur:
Yes. Actually, the day before I got the email about The Call, I received a rejection that felt awful. It was personalized with useful feedback, but I'd felt so much hope for this round and it felt like it was all falling apart. Generally, I tell myself that I'm a talented writer and odds are it WILL happen someday when the timing is right, so long as I don't give up.

QT: Is this your first book?

Nicole Wilbur:
This is the 3rd book I've written as an adult.

QT: Do you have any formal writing training?

Nicole Wilbur:
No, although I've taken a number of classes through my university and was part of an Oxford summer program last year.

QT: How many times did you re-write/edit your book?

Nicole Wilbur:
Too many to count!

QT: Did you have beta readers for your book?

Nicole Wilbur:
Yes, I had three rounds, totalling 6 or 7 readers. I also worked with developmental editors.

QT: Did you outline your book, or do you write from the hip?

Nicole Wilbur:
Outline!

QT: How long have you been querying for this book? Other books?

Nicole Wilbur:
I sent 10 queries in 2024 with 4 requests that ended in rejections. I decided the book wasn't ready so I revised it, and then queried again in the spring of 2025.

QT: About how many query letters did you send out for this book?

Nicole Wilbur:
32

QT: On what criteria did you select the agents you queried?

Nicole Wilbur:
I looked at Publisher's Marketplace to get a sense of the Agencies playing in the YA space and then queried agents at agencies that had made recent YA deals (sometimes I queried that agent, sometimes I queried new agents to the agency). I also looked for MSWLs that mentioned heists, puzzles, adventure, and Italy.

QT: Did you tailor each query to the specific agent, and if so, how?

Nicole Wilbur:
Generally, yes, I tried to mention what it was in their MSWL that made me query them OR a client's book I enjoyed. I also met a few at conferences so I made sure to say if I'd met them.

Query Letter:

Dear Katie,

It was lovely meeting you at WDW California 2025, I really enjoyed our conversation and am thrilled to share my YA contemporary heist thriller with you.

SOME KIND OF CRIMINAL is the high-octane action of Thieves Gambit, the Italian backdrop and queer heart of How it All Blew Up, and the intricate puzzle of the Inheritance Games. Complete at 85,000 words, it stands alone with series potential.

Lena Abers is a snitch. Everyone in the orchestra says so. She has one last shot at admission to the music conservatory of her dreams. She can’t afford a misstep. No risks.

Which is why she should walk away when a charismatic stranger, Maisie, recruits her for a mission to steal the recently discovered—and legendary—Stralius violin from Florence.

The crew needs an inside (wo)man. Stealing the Stralius would make Lena a criminal. But only Maisie can get Lena a spot playing in the Stralius’s unveiling concert, which will guarantee Lena’s conservatory admission. Criminal it is.

As Lena infiltrates the elite circle orchestrating the Stralius’s unveiling, she discovers she’s not the only one after it. To steal it first, she and Maisie must decipher a historical mystery while staying ahead of a gun-wielding blackmailer. But most dangerous of all? Lena just might be falling for Maisie.

When Lena is caught and her freedom and future are at risk, she must decide what dreams she'll sacrifice—and how far she'll go to save Maisie's life.

I am a product manager and digital nomad, adventuring in a new country every month. Much like Lena, I've found community, sapphic love, and an urge to question societal expectations abroad. I have a growing AuthorTube channel with over 2000 subscribers under my pen name Nicole Wilbur, and was recently accepted into the advanced program at the Oxford Creative Writing summer school 2025.