Dylan Postl (aka Swoggle / Hornswoggle) recently spoke with Wrestlezone’s Bill Pritchard while promoting the release of his new book Life Is Short and So Am I: My Life Inside, Outside, and Under the Wrestling Ring, in stores today.
Postl talked about the project being three years in the making, noting that he linked up with writer Ian Douglass about the project after he was released by WWE in 20126. Swoggle says he previously had the idea to write a book but lacked the motivation to do it alone, but Douglass’ and Ross Owen Williams’ effort resulted in nearly 50 hours of interviews that turned into the final product that’s hitting stores today.
A big theme in the new book is about the personal struggles Swoggle went through growing up, with Postl himself noting he “went through physical hell” as a kid. In addition to various surgeries and family issues, Swoggle talks about booking decisions and adjusting to life on the road as a wrestler, and he’s able to stay resilient because “you can’t just be down about everything, or else it’s going to eat away at you for the rest of your life.” Swoggle added, “You’ve got to get past it. The minute you get past it, then you’re growing and learning from that.”
Swoggle noted one of his best friends from the wrestling business is Kofi Kingston, who is (finally) grabbing the brass ring as WWE Champion. He explained that one disadvantage to getting an early copy of his book is that the media didn’t get a chance to read the great forewords written by Kingston and Curt Hawkins. He said he’s very happy Kofi is getting the opportunity he is because it’s “not only deserved, but the fans are enjoying it.”
“I asked Kofi and Curt Hawkins because they’ve always been my best friends in wrestling, and so I thought why not have them do it? I don’t want this fake foreword by someone I don’t really care about, I wanted it from them. [Kofi’s] was first and I didn’t see it until the final published copy, and man, their two forewords put a smile on my face and welled up my eyes at the same time. It was very—Kofi starts the whole book,” Swoggle exclaimed, “and it couldn’t be a better start to the whole book because it’s funny and caring and everything encapsulated in one. I’m so happy for Kofi, and it’s proof that he’s such an awesome guy. No one would argue that he deserves to be WWE Champion; everyone on that roster and in that locker room, everyone was happy for that moment.”
Another constant throughout the book is the fact that Swoggle is able to not only poke fun at himself, but he’s fair in criticism about himself and the wrestling business itself. When asked what he hopes fans take from the book, he joked “that I didn’t intentionally ruin the Cruiserweight division, since everyone thinks I did. And I didn’t intentionally ruin the Anonymous [RAW] GM storyline, since everyone thinks I did. I didn’t intentionally ruin anything, actually, that people think I did.” Swoggle went on to explain that a fair chance is all he wants, and that “it was crazy to reflect on just how much I did in that time” with WWE.
Dylan Postl’s new book, Life Is Short and So Am I: My Life Inside, Outside, and Under the Wrestling Ring, is available now through ECW Press, and other book retailers including Amazon, Barnes & Noble and more.
