I have always had a number of parts lined up in case the muse failed. A lepidopterist exploring fabulous jungles came first. Then there was the chess grand master, then the tennis ace with an unreturnable service, then the goalie saving a historical shot, and finally, finally, the author of a pile of unknown writings – Pale Fire, Lolita, Ada – that my heirs discover and publish.
– Vladimir Nabokov in a 1977 BBC interview
The Mind Body Moderate 