Over 300 Ways To Say "Said"

[La Volpe]

I love seeing these kinds of lists for said but I think that they should be reserved for special occasions. Often I have noticed that using something other than said/says tends to call too much attention to the tag. I would rather have my dialogue tags go somewhat unnoticed

This is my feelings exactly. Though most of the time, you don't even need "said" tags. Using beats, or just alternating lines between the two people involved in the dialogue is often enough.

Some notes:
One of my biggest pet peeves is using non-speaking tags to tag dialogue. E.g. "I'm sick of this," he glowered. Or even worse e.g. "I have to get out of the house," he opened the door.
Enough to make me shudder.

Personally, I use said or an action beat when I just need to identify a speaker (so this happens often in scenes with a bunch of people talking). When I use adverb-tags or said-alternatives, it's usually to make something clearer. E.g. "I hate you," she said playfully. Often, the context makes this unnecessary as well, but whenever I think a said-alternative or adverb-tag might avoid confusion, I add one.

 

[TheCrystallineEntity]

And there's always the classic 'Ha-ha!' He laughed.

 

[Ireth]

And there's always the classic 'Ha-ha!' He laughed.

Or, for anyone who's read Eragon -- "Sorry," apologized Brom.

 

[Geo]

I think that as long as it doesn't trample the dialogue (because it's weird, comical or misplaced) and it's not redundant (as in some of the well chosen examples above) any tag can be effectively used. Of course, I don't mean that they have to be used, says-said goes a long way, but they can be use.

 

[TheCrystallineEntity]

^^I have, unfortunately, read Eragon.

 

[Eric Hawke]

I only really like said, asked and stuff like whispered, yelled. Anything else, like replied and inquired just seems superfluous.