Authoring Content

Front matter markers, the common keys every template supports, and worked examples of both file types.

Two file types, one front matter system

boxlang-ssg reads both .md and .bxm files. Each file may include YAML front matter to control metadata and output behavior. The marker syntax differs by file type:

Type	Front matter markers
Markdown	Start and end with `---`
BoxLang markup	Start with `<!---` and end with `--->`

Common front matter keys

Key	Meaning
`title`	Page title
`description`	Short description
`type`	Content type (e.g. `page`, `post`) — used for view fallback and collections
`layout`	Layout file in `_includes/layouts` without extension (defaults to `main`)
`view`	View/partial in `_includes/` without extension; falls back to `type`
`slug`	Override file slug (used for posts)
`tags`	Array of tags; builds `collections.tags` and `collections.byTag`
`date`	Date the content refers to
`permalink`	Override output path, e.g. `/tag/{{tag}}.html`
`fileExt`	Override output extension, e.g. `xml`
`published`	Boolean to include/exclude from output
`excludeFromCollections`	Boolean to skip the item from collections

Example page (index.bxm)

html — index.bxm<!---
type: page
layout: main
--->
<bx:output>
<bx:loop array="#collections.post#" item="post">
  <a href="#post.permalink#">#post.title#</a><br />
</bx:loop>
</bx:output>

Example post (posts/example.md)

markdown — posts/example.md---
layout: main
type: post
slug: my-first-post
title: My First Post
description: A short summary
tags:
- misc
published: true
---

# Hello
This is my first post.