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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/31551
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/31551
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

You can also tell about such features by having a walk-on character with a deformity or amputation. I have met at least four people missing one or more fingers, or with a half finger. Check out this link of disabled politicians (in the US, but also elsewhere):

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List\_of\_physically\_disabled\_politicians#United\_States](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_physically_disabled_politicians#United_States)

So you can have a bartender, delivery guy, messenger, store clerk, etc missing a finger, and your MC observes that:

> Joe thought the worker was holding the hammer oddly, then realized he only had six fingers: The inner thumb was amputated near the bottom knuckle, and he had a weaker grip on it. _Probably a work accident,_ he thought. It wasn't the first person he'd seen that lost a finger or three to a circular saw.

This kind of surprise or shock or 'resolved confusion' is related to conflict, or internal conflict, a puzzle to solve for an observant character. It lets you impart information, show him to be observant and a problem solver, even though the 'problem' has nothing to do with the plot; it is a character trait.

Similar to humor, it can show a character thinks out of the box, is not relentlessly serious, etc. That might not impact directly on the plot, but it can help readers relate better to the character.

Original score: 4