How do I install the Voice And Tone skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add owl-listener/voice-and-tone in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Voice And Tone safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Voice And Tone?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Voice And Tone free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Voice And Tone?

Owl Listener (@owl-listener) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Voice And Tone by owl-listener — Agent Skill

Name: Voice And Tone
Author: Owl Listener

File contents

Voice and Tone

Voice is who you are. Tone is how you say it right now. Voice stays constant. Tone adapts to context. This skill defines both so every word sounds like the same person wrote it.

When to Use

At the start of a project, during or after design-strategy
When the content-writer agent needs voice guardrails
When interface copy sounds inconsistent across screens

Step 1: Define Voice Attributes

Choose 3-5. For each, define "this, not that":

Attribute	This	Not that
Warm	Friendly, approachable	Sycophantic, emoji-heavy
Knowledgeable	Confident, precise	Academic, condescending
Direct	Clear, action-oriented	Blunt, cold, robotic
Encouraging	Celebrates effort	Patronising, fake-cheerful

The "not that" column prevents drift.

Step 2: Define Tone by Context

Context	Feel	Example
Success	Celebration, warmth	"Your monstera is happy. Next water Thursday."
Error	Calm, helpful, no blame	"We couldn't save that. Check your connection and try again."
Onboarding	Welcoming, confidence-building	"Let's get to know your plants. About 30 seconds."
Empty state	Inviting, action-oriented	"Your windowsill is empty. Add your first plant."
Loading	Reassuring, brief	"Checking your plants..."
Destructive	Clear, calm, reversible	"Remove this plant? You can undo this."

Step 3: Build the Vocabulary

Always use	Never use
water	irrigate
happy	optimal
check it out	investigate
you	the user

The content-writer agent uses this as a constraint.

Step 4: Set Reading Level

Audience	Target
General consumer	Grade 6-8
Professional tool	Grade 8-10
Technical docs	Grade 10-12

Voice Audit Checklist

Every screen sounds like the same person wrote it
Voice attributes are present in the copy
Tone matches the context
Vocabulary list words used consistently
Reading level at or below target
Copy works read aloud by a screen reader

What You Deliver

Voice attributes table (3-5, with "this not that")
Tone guide by context with examples
Vocabulary list
Reading level target
3-5 before/after examples

Integration

Informed by: design-strategy, design-discovery
Feeds into: content-writer agent, accessible-content, design-critic

---name: voice-and-tonedescription: Use when establishing or applying brand voice — defining voice attributes, tone adaptation across contexts, vocabulary lists, writing examples, and ensuring consistent personality across the interface---# Voice and ToneVoice is who you are. Tone is how you say it right now. Voice stays constant. Tone adapts to context. This skill defines both so every word sounds like the same person wrote it.## When to Use- At the start of a project, during or after `design-strategy`- When the content-writer agent needs voice guardrails- When interface copy sounds inconsistent across screens## Step 1: Define Voice AttributesChoose 3-5. For each, define "this, not that":| Attribute | This | Not that ||-----------|------|----------|| Warm | Friendly, approachable | Sycophantic, emoji-heavy || Knowledgeable | Confident, precise | Academic, condescending || Direct | Clear, action-oriented | Blunt, cold, robotic || Encouraging | Celebrates effort | Patronising, fake-cheerful |The "not that" column prevents drift.## Step 2: Define Tone by Context| Context | Feel | Example ||---------|------|---------|| Success | Celebration, warmth | "Your monstera is happy. Next water Thursday." || Error | Calm, helpful, no blame | "We couldn't save that. Check your connection and try again." || Onboarding | Welcoming, confidence-building | "Let's get to know your plants. About 30 seconds." || Empty state | Inviting, action-oriented | "Your windowsill is empty. Add your first plant." || Loading | Reassuring, brief | "Checking your plants..." || Destructive | Clear, calm, reversible | "Remove this plant? You can undo this." |## Step 3: Build the Vocabulary| Always use | Never use ||-----------|----------|| water | irrigate || happy | optimal || check it out | investigate || you | the user |The content-writer agent uses this as a constraint.## Step 4: Set Reading Level| Audience | Target ||----------|--------|| General consumer | Grade 6-8 || Professional tool | Grade 8-10 || Technical docs | Grade 10-12 |## Voice Audit Checklist- [ ] Every screen sounds like the same person wrote it- [ ] Voice attributes are present in the copy- [ ] Tone matches the context- [ ] Vocabulary list words used consistently- [ ] Reading level at or below target- [ ] Copy works read aloud by a screen reader## What You Deliver- Voice attributes table (3-5, with "this not that")- Tone guide by context with examples- Vocabulary list- Reading level target- 3-5 before/after examples## Integration- **Informed by:** `design-strategy`, `design-discovery`- **Feeds into:** `content-writer` agent, `accessible-content`, `design-critic`

Frequently asked questions

Voice And Tone