Tone refers to the author's attitude towards a subject, character, or audience in a piece of writing. Think of it as the author's voice and the way they express themselves.
Tone can be formal or informal or even playful
Tone can be emotional for example, cheerful, serious or sarcastic
Tone can be purposeful as authors choose their tone intentionally to convey a specific message
Tone is not the same as mood
Tone reflects the author's attitude whereas mood describes how the reader feels while reading the work. For example, a horror story may have a dark tone that creates a creepy mood.
