West-James Press

07/12/2026

"Burning Salt" coming soon!

https://www.westjamespress.com/books/burning-salt/

07/09/2026

Just published: "Burning Salt: After First Contact | Why We Returned from the Void". Check it out and subscribe to get everything I'm making.
https://www.westjamespress.com/burning-salt-after-first-contact-why-we-returned-from-the-void/

07/07/2026

I'm excited to share that my new science fiction novel, "Burning Salt", releases on August 1.

If you're curious about what to expect, Readers' Favorite has already published its review, calling attention to the novel's unique perspective and world-building.

Read the review here:
https://readersfavorite.com/book-review/burning-salt

Thank you to everyone who has supported my writing so far. Every share, review, and recommendation helps an independent author reach new readers. I can't wait to share this story with you.

05/12/2026

With MWSA Public Page – I just made it onto their weekly engagement list by being one of their top engagers 🎉

05/12/2026

Thank you to Readers Favorite for the thoughtful and critical reviews of "Kevlar, Tattoos and Invisible Scars".

This book was never intended to be a polished war story or a story about heroics. It was meant to honestly examine what happens when someone spends years convincing themselves their experiences “didn’t count,” even when the evidence says otherwise.

I’m grateful the reviewers understood the heart of the book: invisible wounds, identity, self-worth, and the damage caused by minimizing our own struggles.

For anyone interested, the ebook is free on Amazon, Apple Books, Google Pay Books, Kobo, and B&N Nook.

In Kevlar, Tattoos and Invisible Scars, Matthew West-James gives us a zero-filter look at the mental conflict of coming home from Iraq and feeling like a complete fraud. As an 88M truck driver, he saw combat and earned the medals, yet spent years convincing himself that his role and experiences stil...

05/05/2026

“A raw, unflinching memoir… essential reading.”
Recent Amazon Review for "Kevlar, Tattoos, and Invisible Scars"

If this helps even one person who feels like I did, it’s worth it.

Free download: https://westjames.press/scars

05/03/2026

Thanks Military Writers Society of America (MWSA Public Page) for adding our newest title to their online library listing page!

Author's Synopsis This is not a story about the worst day of a war. It is a story about what happens when you decide your experience didn’t count. After serving in Iraq and earning a Combat Action Badge, Matthew West-James came home with something harder to define. Not visible wounds. Not a clear

05/01/2026

In less than 100 days, something unexpected happened.

“Unlearning What Worked” hit #1 in Two-Hour Biography & Memoir Short Reads (paid).
“Wrong Bird” climbed to Top 5 in Humor Essays (paid).

No big publisher. No massive launch team. Just stories about getting things wrong and figuring out what they were trying to teach me.

And it’s still moving.

If you’ve ever waved at someone who wasn’t waving at you, trusted the wrong instinct, or learned something the hard way… these books are for you.

👉 “Wrong Bird” will be FREE on May 2 (Kindle)

This whole experiment started as a way to reclaim mistakes instead of hiding them. Turns out, people connect with that more than perfection.

We’ll see what happens next.

04/27/2026

If this AI horse isn’t a symbol for being confidently wrong, I don’t know what is.

Perfect for Derby season. Sometimes we’re all just facing backward and somehow still in the race.

🐎 And fittingly, Wrong Bird, my book about laughing at human error, will be free May 2 on Kindle.