Another word for said

     I am taking a break for novel writing to post this. I thought I needed to switch gears for a few minutes, but as I was opening the webpage I wondered what am I going to post about. I've wanted to talk more about writing, and not just status updates. I thought if only I had the words to say. And that moved to 'another word for said.' As a writer you can find yourself cutting corners on your first draft, especially if you are tired or sometimes when you are on a roll, the creative little quirks are spent on larger issues than repetitive diction. "Another word for said" is a popular handout I've seen on the internet, on sites like pinterest. It's just a list of words to use in place of said and that got me thinking about my own writing style. What are your writing quirks and bad habits?
    My friend, Ali who is kind enough to proofread for me and give me her opinion of my work, has threatened bodily hard if I didn't stop using 'and' at ever turn. On one page alone, she counted 18 'and's. Another time there were nine in a paragraph; it was a rather short paragraph. I've got a bad habit of run-on sentences and I like lists. I really like lists, where 'and' comes in very handy.
     So what are some ways to stop the repetitive word usage? Well, I have my trusty Thesaurus at the ready, but more often than not, I look up something in order to find that allusive word I can't get off the tip of my tongue. Not to find an alternative for more common words.
     Handy charts and lists can be found all over the web. Some creative thinking, some common sense and a good proofreader are very good tools to help get away from upsetting your readers. So here is my tip of the day, look at what you are writing and try to find another word for said. Here are two lists I found on the internet for 'said' and 'look.' I'm not sure who made them or where exactly they came from, but thank you word continuous person for creating them. You have made my writing a little better.

Thank you! And don't forget my motto for NaNoWriMo: Write On!