@Precipitation24 i didn't know about it either until recently, I'm glad it helped
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anymany
i don't think there is a difference between ___asked and asked___
although what i think you're asking is the use of the commas. i think i narrowed it down to this; if there's more to say, add a comma, if there isn't add a period.
"You always tell such sad stories," Andrea said.
The bell rang. Mrs. English dismissed the class.
In the hallway, Andrea said to Zebra, "You know, you are a very gloomy life form."
"Andrea, get off my case," Zebra said.
―ZEBRA
in this example, "andrea said" is the end of the sentence, she finished speaking, and now its time for another idea, in this case, "the bell rang" is the new idea
in the "andrea said to zebra example, there's still more to the sentence. "in the hallway, andrea said to zebra" is not a complete thought, there isn't any speech before it so the comma is there to prepare the reader for the dialogue
what you seem to be having some difficulties is called "dialogue tags", i found this pretty neat article that explains it a bit more, but like all writing, it's an artform and that sometimes comes with variations in rules
https://blog.reedsy.com/guide/how-to-write-dialogue/tags/
Precipitation24
Thank you! I did not know the term "dialogue tag" and Googling and checking books did not give me enough information. I will treasure your advice and that site.