Aurora is a custom-designed blog theme for the 11ty (Eleventy) static site generator that pulls content from the Ghost Content API, producing a JAMstack blog with a headless CMS backend.
What is Aurora for 11ty?
Aurora is a blog theme built specifically for 11ty (Eleventy), a Node.js-based static site generator. It uses Ghost as the content management system, connecting to the Ghost Content API to fetch posts and pages at build time. The output is a fully static website that can be hosted on any static host, with Netlify listed as a target platform in the repository topics. The theme is authored by GitHub user issa4700 and carries a 2020 copyright.
The theme's core function is to pair a custom front-end design with Ghost's headless CMS workflow. Instead of using Ghost's default theme engine, Aurora lets 11ty handle template rendering and site generation while Ghost serves as the admin interface for writing content. This makes it a JAMstack template: JavaScript, APIs, and Markup.
Key Features
- Eleventy (11ty) static site generator — Built on the 11ty SSG, which compiles templates into plain HTML without a runtime server.
- Ghost Content API integration — Reads published content from a Ghost CMS instance through the Content API, so writers keep using Ghost's editor.
- Custom blog design — Designed specifically as a blog theme, with layout and styling tailored for article reading.
- JAMstack architecture — Produces static files that can be cached and served from a CDN, with Netlify named as a deployment target.
- Open source repository — Source code is available on GitHub under the username issa4700, allowing for forking and customization.
- No database at runtime — All content is fetched at build time, so the deployed site does not need a server or database connection.
Who is it for?
- Bloggers using Ghost — Writers who prefer Ghost's clean editor but want the speed and security of a static blog.
- Eleventy developers — Developers who are comfortable with 11ty templates and want a ready-made blog layout with CMS integration.
- JAMstack site owners — Site owners deploying to Netlify who want to keep content management separate from presentation.
What can you do with it?
- Set up a static blog with Ghost as the CMS — Configure the Ghost Content API, run 11ty to generate pages, and publish the static output.
- Customize the design — Since it's an 11ty theme, all HTML and CSS templates are editable to match your brand.
- Deploy to Netlify — The theme is positioned for Netlify deployment, so you can connect the repo to Netlify and build on pushes.
