Young Writers Society

One of the important scenes in my novel takes place in a flea market. I've been to them more than a couple of times in the past, but it's been a long time since I've walked around one. What are some things that you've seen at flea markets before? I can't guarantee that all of the things mentioned in here will be included in chapter, but most of them should be woven in as background details or even shown at the tables the characters stop at. I'm looking for pretty much anything. Maybe some of the generic stuff you frequently notice at a flea market, or maybe some of your more bizarre finds.

I'll appreciate any suggestions you give!

Things you will find at every big flea market:

1- at least one stall selling essential oils, candles, and incense. Usually it's a pyramid scheme that someone has bought into and now they're trying to make their money back. Sometimes it's a pyramid scheme that's trying to get people to buy into it -- "Invest just $50 and get rich quick!" Both of these scenarios result in desperate sellers trying to catch passersby.

2- Many many stalls and tables with home crafted stuff. Depending on where in the United States you are, or the culture in the country you're basing this off of, this varies from knickknacks like decorative plates or polymer clay figures, wire jewelry, leather and hematite jewelry (LOTS of hematite jewelry), lots of stamped leather (armbands, belts, bracelets, necklaces, hats).

3- The smell of leather and tobacco. It's not a thing I've "seen" but the crowd at flea markets tends to be older, tends to be full of smokers, and tends to have a lot of the smell of good worn leather. A lot of these older folks, especially older men with a Southwestern/cowboy influence, wear leather belts, hats, wallets, cell phone cases -- anything you can think of. Pair this up with a cigarette rolling machine and a table of stamped leather goods and you've got yourself a typical stall.

4- Art! Lots and lots of homemade art. Weird things, too, like laser-cut wood art, personalized dog tags, glass art (and "glass art" for the stoners out there), polymer clay jewelry as well (I've seen some gorgeous earrings and pendants), so on and so forth.

Jewelry and clothing are probably the biggest sellers at any flea market, but they're followed close behind by art, soaps (LOTS of scented/essential oil soaps) and candles (same as soap).

There's also at least one stall that's nothing but all the crap someone found in their garage that they want to get rid of. At least.

--EDIT--

Keep in mind that a lot of people at flea markets make their living like this! They sell their art for profit. A lot of them aren't going to be making very much profit, at that.

A lot of haggling also goes on in flea markets, because the prices aren't set by a corporate entity. You can always haggle something down to a couple dollars cheaper, and settle on a price both seller and buyer are happy with.

There should always be some place selling incredibly oily Indian food.

(Question: is your flea market set in a fantasy/alternate universe or is it set in an actual place? Also, is it a permanent flea market or a seasonal one/associated with a specific religious festival/cultural celebration/what-have-you? Or is it just a general thing that I am asking too many questions about?)

But! Depending on your setting, flea markets can be one of the best ways of getting large dollops of worldbuilding across, because what is being bought/sold is obviously relevant to the locality. (So culture and climate are both important factors here.) For example, if my city is:

modern. a huge, coastal metropolis set in a South-Asian cultural context (during the summer), then it makes sense for there to be stalls selling secondhand umbrellas--mostly aimed at kids, the cheap plastic sort with attached whistles/trinkets--or sun hats, towels, plastic coolers, flip flops, designer sunglasses knock-offs, etc.

I'd divide stuff into
1] Temporary (seasonal, cultural, religious) -- markets selling goats and cows pop up during the second Eid and there are markets catering specifically for Diwali, Holi, and Christmas (depending on where you are).
2] More-or-less permanent (shoes, nightwear, cutlery, pots and pans, baking supplies, unstitched reams of cloth, jewellery, candlesticks, you can even find stalls selling undergarments) --> tourism-related stuff can probably be classified under this header, too, although of course the nature of handicrafts being sold varies based on the season. (I saw embroidered umbrellas with mirror work on them at a stall last week, I kid you not. Perfectly useless on a day-to-day basis but very pretty.)

But you'll also find markets with entire sections dedicated to books and bags, all the back-to-school stock, pirated textbooks, etc.

Also, although flea markets tend to be very universal in the sort of stuff they sell, much of the product may be branded export surplus or export rejects--in Pakistan, you can find designer jeans with the pockets stitched up, a button or two missing, or uneven lapels being sold in the weekly bazaar. It's also important to remember what kind of social class the market caters to, mostly: some bazaars are set closer to lower-class areas in the city and offer a range of products that are less commercial and more routine essentials. So wheat flour, eggs, rice, gram flour, pulses, meat. etc. Others cater to a wider social strata and attract people regardless of where they come from--here's an example.

++ As a side note, you can even find 'flea' markets within malls or hotels (these are usually the sort arranged for tourists by heritage workers).

Flea markets are very random. All of the people above me have given you great examples. I just want to add that you could have almost anything at a flea market and make it believable. I know of flea markets where there's only clothes and books, but others where there are vintage items and expensive furniture.

Another thing to think about is what kind of flea market would be in your story. The great thing about fiction is that you can create anything and make it believable. For example, if you were to write about a tractor at a flea market, I would believe you. Or dead bugs pressed in a picture frame. It's part of the world that you've created. While writing has to be somewhat realistic it doesn't have to be 100% realistic. Convince me that that's how it is and I will believe you.