Reader Questions

[John]

Occasionally we get reader questions about Caine's Pestilence. I'll address a few here:

Andy (Michigan): is "Prenticel" intentionally associated with any real word like "prentice" or "apprentice"?

CP: "Prenticel" is completely fictional and bears no intentional relationship to any word in the English or any other language.

I don't know how far you are in the book, but Prenticel Diversified Enterprises and its various divisions plays an important role in the plot, increasingly so as the story unfolds. And it is not cast in a favorable light. I wanted to avoid association with any real company, both to avoid reader confusion and to refrain from defaming any actual organization even if unintentionally. So I Googled many made-up names. The one that seemed "safest" based on search results was Prenticel. And it is arguably a nuetral word, unlike a company name containing say the words "industries", "manufacturing", "electric", "steel" and on and on. With "Prenticel", the reader may--as you have--attach any significance, or no significance, that they wish to the word.