A rough idea for establishing the data models for a module within the module itself, for a future generator with a CMS tie-in.

gistfile1.js

// schema/killer-thing.json

{
  "parents": ["Grid", "Container"], // Grids and Containers can add KillerThing as a submodule.
  "model": {
    "foo": "String",
    "bar": "Integer",
    "baz": "Boolean",
    "a": ["CoolThing"], // An Array of CoolThing Models.
    "b": "RadThing" // A single RadThing Model.
  }
}

// schema/cool-thing.json

{
  "parents": ["Grid"], // All Grid modules can accept CoolThing as a submodule
  "tags": ["String"],
  "model": {
    "a": "String",
    "b": "String",
    "c": ["Integer"]
  }
}

// schema/rad-thing.json

{
  "parents": [], // No modules can automatically use RadThing, must be implicitly required, like in KillerThing.
  "model": {
    "a": "Boolean",
  }
}

// schema/sweet-submodule.json
// An example of a submodule that `KillerThing` and `CoolThing` can require.

{
  parents: ['KillerThing, CoolThing'],
  model: {
    'a': 'Boolean',
  }
}

// routes/cool-route.json
// Expect `a` to be an id matching an existing `CoolThing` model.
// `b`, `bar` are expected to conform to a given test.
// If any assertion fails this 404s.

{
  "route": "/cool/:a/:b?querySelectorFoo=:bar",
  "layout": "CoolLayout",
  "assert": {
    "a": "CoolThing",
    "b": "[a-zA-Z0-9]",
    "bar": "[a-zA-Z0-9]"
  }
}

// layouts/cool-layout.jade
// Accesses route data: `route.a`, `route.b`, `route.foo`
// Route data exposed to any included module.

global.tags = getData('CoolModule', route.a).tags

+getModule('header');

  +container
    +grid
      +getModule('CoolModule', route.a);

  +container
    +grid
      // KillerThing could respond to global.tags for variations based on the incoming route.
      // Per jade, one `block` insertion point in each module that we expose as a mixin.
      +getModule('KillerThing', 'an-instance-of-killer-thing');
        if route.b
          +getModule('SweetSubmodule', route.b);

+getModule('footer');