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How to combine literature and procedural generation? (a difficult question, no idea as to answer)
Perhaps you know the objective correlative, it is a famous essay by TS Eliot. The theory goes like this: you could write a story about Hamlet, as follows
Hamlet's father was murdered. Hamlet was sad
This may be a way of doing it, but not really very literature-worthy. What is better is what Shakespeare wrote (or stole from earlier works lol) filling the story with ominous battlements, portentous ghosts, weird Oedipal metaphors between mother and son etc. So the idea of the Objective Correlative is to identify objects, settings, a chain of events that evoke the emotion instead of just writing Hamlet was sad, Hamlet was angry, Hamlet was jealous, Hamlet was worried. The skill of the author is conjuring this chain of object events and settings to coax and frame the feeling out instead of just saying it. Sometimes the process breaks down - TS Eliot notes that Shakespeare has never experienced the feeling of having his father murdered and then seeing his uncle fawn over his mother, so conveniently makes Hamlet feign madness to emotionally reconcile that part.
So how to procedurally generate this is the question. We have random tables from dnd, the aleatorical engines of gameplay. We have no problem conjuring up random locations or assets or even framing, whether it is chain mail and axes for Beowulf, or exoskeletons and railguns for mecha battles.
The difficult bit is the reification. So look, with javascript I can generate random scenarios like this using arrays of {character:[ ], emotion, action, items, locations} etc. This alone can inspire some encounters, but how to procedurally overlay the template of narrative and meaning?
Monk
Upset => Forceful
recover
hammer, pentacle, prayer
The Two-Necked Crow => The Stranger's Palm
Vagrant
Hopeless => Mellow
uncover
armour, rags, wheel
City of Idols => Twistlewood
Magister
Remorseful => Heartbroken
bribe
bird nest, jewel, lyre
Desert => Desolation
Orphan
Agitated => Exuberant
return
needle, bracelet, treasure
Nastrond => Toadswheel
Lowborn
Anxious => Distressed
capture
torch, scythe, cradle
Skelder Tent-Market => River
Vagabond
Joyful => Irritated
gather
fireworks, mirror, compass
Chasm => The Needle's Eye
Scholar
Angry => Offended
defend
matchlock, seashell, lantern
Dockyards => Grasslands
Torturer
Drained => Fearful
assassinate
helm, maul, whistle
Cavern => Old City
