Hi David,
I'm Alex Skutt, the publisher at McBooks Press.
Probably--now more than ever--in these difficult economic times, the employment of a good literary agent is extremely helpful. As you probably know, agents serve as gatekeepers for publishers. They pass promising manuscripts along to appropriate publishers, while side-tracking authors whose work has less promise in the trade book marketplace. Publishers' staffs are being whittled down to bare minimums. Fewer editors are available to sort through submissions, and they are grateful for the help that agents provide.
McBooks Press has traditionally been open to both agented and unagented manuscripts, but we certainly find that the typical agented manuscript tends to be superior. McBooks, like other publishers, takes note of the implied vote of confidence in a project that is signified by an agent's participation in the process.
Your online participation in LibraryThing and other sites is helpful in getting attention for your work. You might consider posting PDF sample chapters of your novels at websites like scribd.com and writing.com (for free).
Best regards,
Alex
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